Fragile
by MikiMagic
Summary: Noodle is adjusting to normal life again, and 2D discovers he may have developed feelings for Noodle. I've been wanting to write about this for a while now; Since we are so unsure of what happened in that gap between Plastic Beach and 212 Wobble Street London, I thought I'd take advantage of the mystery. Enjoy. :)
1. Chapter 1

She lay limp in his arms. It was so hard to keep her eyes open, for they were heavy with exhaustion; not to mention his skin stinging from the salt water and harsh sun. All she wanted to do was sleep...just sleep...

He walked through the hot sand, barefoot, sunburned, and tired. He couldn't rest now. He had to find help...or something.

He looked down at her, the bruise on her face and the cuts on her body.

Poor little girl...she could never catch a break, not even after all of these years.

"Mmmmf!" 2D grabbed at his head while crouching down next to his bed. He wanted to believe this was all some horrible dream that he could soon wake up from, but it was all too real. All he could hear were explosions all around him, as well as intense pressure of the sea crashing against the window of his underwater room. He knew of nothing going on outside of his prison, which is what frightened him the most. He was used to the beatings, from both Murdoc and Cyborg Noodle. He was used to the helicopters, planes, gunshots, and missiles. He was even beginning to get to used to the dreaded Plastic Beach and the disgusting under water cage he was in...but nothing compared to all the chaos going on around him...chaos he could not even see. He felt like the whole island was going to just fall apart at any minute. Where was Murdoc? Cyborg? They probably left him there to die as they fled for their lives. Was this really how his life would end; if this, in fact, was the end?

His room shook violently as he gasped and held onto the side of his bed. Something big was happening out there...something dangerous. Would he get out alive? Unfortunately, "no" was a huge possibility.

Meanwhile outside, Murdoc dodged out of bullet pathways. They were trying to kill him. "He" was trying to kill him. The Boogieman. He's been after his soul for years now, and he was getting very impatient.

Cyborg Noodle stepped in front of Murdoc, shooting at the planes and hit men like a maniac. It was, after all, her job to protect him. Many wondered about the Cyborg. She was a cyborg clone of the original guitarist, Noodle, and although she was said to have Noodle's DNA and some memories, she seemed very different from the original. She intimidated most, and was feared by many, but that truly didn't matter. Her purpose was to play in the band in replacement of Noodle, and to protect her master that created her. Did she have emotions? Perhaps...but nobody really knew. Murdoc stood proud of his creation, but that's all he looked at her as; his creation, his bodyguard. His tool.  
2D feared her. She was nothing like the "real" Noodle at all. When he first saw her, he even thought it was the real Noodle. But he quickly realized her personality and mannerisms were all too different, not to mention she obeyed every one of Murdoc's commands, contributing to keeping him locked in the under water room he was stuck in for over 2 years. She was violent with him, and scary. No, she was nothing like the real Noodle. Although she was sometimes easy to work with music-wise, she would sometimes go off on 2D. He wasn't sure if she really had emotions, or if this was just how Murdoc programmed her. Even so, she stilled scared him to some extent. She didn't talk much, with the exception of Murdoc programming her to do so, but other than that, not a whole lot was said.

Cyborg continued to shoot at the enemy, and turned back to see Murdoc hunched over behind a rock, at some points shooting at a few men with his own gun. Murdoc then fumbled around in his pockets and pulled out a ring of keys. He glanced at Cyborg.

"Cyborg! Meet me on the other side of the beach!" then he bolted.

Cyborg turned back and continued shooting. There was a motor boat on the other side of the beach...were they planning on escaping? And if so, would it be pointless with so many enemies attacking from the sky? And what about the dullard down below? Was he honestly going to leave him there?

Cyborg snapped out of her thoughts and ran, dodging other bullets and grenades as she reloaded. Right now she had to follow orders and meet Murdoc on the other side. The blue haired one would have to figure something else out on his own.

"There! I see it!" a young girl, about 21 years old wearing a white dress pointed ahead. Her black hair blew in the intense wind and surprisingly, the oni mask that covered her eyes stayed put. She held on tightly to her strange ride, the head of a nearly 50 foot tall black man.  
Noodle looked down and saw a large creature swimming beside them...a whale. It swam ahead of the two...towards the beach...near 2D's room...at least she thought that's where it might be if she heard correctly.

"Russel! That whale! It's going towards the beach! I think towards 2D's room!"

"Are ya'll sure? How do ya' know?"

"I just have a feeling! Russel, you have to stop it!"

"I'm on it! But Noods! There's a lot of open fire out there! You should take cova'!"

Russel boomed over all of the chaotic noise happening around them.

"Mm! Right! Russel! Open your mouth!"

Russel nodded and opened his mouth as Noodle hopped in. Russel continued to wade through the water nearing the beach. They were walking into some deep shit...but there was no turning back now. Russel quickly followed the whale...why was it looking to attack? It must have been the radioactive funk in the water...everything was acting abnormal because of it, even the sea life. Russel quickly made his way to shore. He had to hurry.

2D scurried to his window. He couldn't take it, he had to see what was going on...or try to see. He saw a lot of debris in the water, oil...even a few bodies. 2D gulped. This was insane. Suddenly he jolted, the force from a blast knocking him to the ground.

"Ugh!" 2D smacked his head against the ground, blacking out.

It was probably only a few minutes, because when 2D came to, he was still there. And there was still a battle going on outside.

"Mmf..." 2D rubbed his head as he slowly sat up. "Bloody 'ell..."

Suddenly, he felt water on his face.

"Huh?"

2D looked at his hand...it was wet...with salt water. He then realized the back of his head was also wet. He looked down and realized he was sitting in water.

"Water?!"

2D frantically stood up, nearly falling over again. The floor of his room had at least 1 inch of water...and rising. That last blast...or hit...or whatever it was must have weakened the walls to his room...and now there was a leak somewhere. Shit.  
2D looked around and spotted the small crack on the far right side of his room. More water began to pour through the crack, making it bigger, if he wasn't mistaken. 2D's eyes widened and whitened. He frantically ran to the door of his room.

"Lemme out!" he banged on the door. "Lemme out dammit! 'Ello?!" 2D banged even harder, causing his fists to reddened and bruise.

"Please...lemme out..." 2D slowed down and slumped down to the floor and into the water, which was now several inches. The water was coming through fast...nobody could hear him. The door was still locked. He was definitely as good as dead. As more water flooded through the crack, 2D only sat there, thinking his life over. Was this really it? His life's end was at 33 years old? With no accomplishments of his own? No real girlfriend? Nothing? He hasn't seen his mother in months...a couple of years...his friends back at home...this was it.  
2D shook his head and slowly managed to raise himself from the floor. He slowly walked over to the dreaded window. One last look at the "somewhat" outside world...which sucked, because his last view of the world was a shitty, debris filled sea of pollution. 2D glanced out his window, only to his horror see a huge whale of all things. It was racing towards his window! 2D's eyes widened. So which was it? Dying from drowning? Dying from being sucked underneath the sea? Or dying from one of his biggest fears? Being eaten by a whale...what a way to go out. The magazines will have a field day. The whale was very close now. This was it.  
2D quickly shoved his clown mask over his face as the whale took a chomp into the side his room. Water rushed into the room, hitting 2D full force all over his body.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" 2D screamed as he got sucked into the ocean.

"Oh no you don't!" Russel yelled as he forcefully grabbed the whale's backside and flung it upward, tossing it halfway across the way. Russel quickly looked around for 2D, but didn't have much time to do so, considering planes were shooting at him from every direction. He began swatting at the planes as if they were annoying insects, causing them to explode and crash into the sea. He had to get Noodle to shore; she couldn't stay in his mouth for too long. After taking out the planes, he made his way to the shore.

Meanwhile on shore, Cyborg made her way to the opposite side of the beach, running into the others. Cyborg began to malfunction again, her defense mechanisms going out of whack. Suddenly everybody looked towards the shore side, where a huge 50 foot black man stood over the beach. Cyborg stared up at the monstrosity and readied her guns. He definitely posed as a threat. Should she shoot? The huge man lowered his head near the shore. Cyborg backed up and got ready, just in case she was attacked...wait a second...this giant man...

Russel opened his mouth to reveal someone inside. Everyone stared as a young girl slowly climbed out of the mouth of the giant. She removed the cat mask that covered her face and looked down at the Cyborg. The two locked eyes almost immediately, saying nothing for a few seconds. Noodle hopped down from Russel's mouth, causing Cyborg to point her guns at her.

"Do not move!" she barked.

Noodle took another step.

"I said do not move you!"

"Noodle..." Russel warned, hoping Noodle wasn't going in over her head.

Cyborg stood her ground and kept the guns pointed at Noodle.

"Why? Are you going to shoot me...other Noodle?" Noodle asked almost too casually.  
Cyborg's eyes widened. This was her. This was the "real" Noodle.

The two stood toe to toe, eye to eye. The chaotic noise had quieted down a lot since Russel and Noodle had arrived. Everyone was wondering what would happen next...

"Wha' tha' bloody are you doin'?!" Murdoc's voice growled from behind Cyborg.

Cyborg turned to see Murdoc hurrying from behind a tree. He then stopped in his tracks at the sight of Noodle and Russel. Murdoc locked eyes with Noodle, speechless at the moment. Then he grinned.

"Heh. Knew you two would show up eventually." he smirked.

"Cut the crap Murdoc." Noodle began to walk towards him. "What the hell is going on?"

Cyborg got ready to shoot.

"Cyborg, guns down." Murdoc commanded.

Cyborg only nodded and lowered her weapons. Noodle walked past the Cyborg, only eying it slightly as she walked by. She was...interesting... to say the least. It was weird, as if she was looking in a mirror. However, she was older, and this looked more like her teen self, making it even weirder. Regardless...

"Murdoc, what's going on?" Noodle asked.

"Well, hm, funny you should ask...ta' make a long story short: Boogieman wants me dead, obviously. I'm tryin' ta' get my arse off this beach before it blows to smithereens."

Noodle's eyes widened. "Blow up? What?!"

"Yeah, let's just say this whole island is rigged ta' blow in about, oh, 10 minutes?"

"You IDIOT!"

"Wow, 5 minutes back and you're already in my fuckin' face..."he mumbled. "Why are you yellin' at me anyway? As if it's MY fault?"

"EVERYTHING is your fault!" Noodle was pissed. Why she came back to all this shit...

"Uh, guys? Hate ta' break up this lil' family reunion, but if this beach is gonna blow, we should prolly' split." Russel spoke up.

Murdoc looked up at Russel. "...Damnnnnn Russ, you're fucking HUGE!"

"Man shut up! We got an emergency here!"

"Okay!" Noodle raised her voice. "We don't have time for this bull shit! Murdoc, how are you getting off the island?"

"Well my boats' right ova' there..." Murdoc turned to see his boat untied from the dock, full of the other artists taking off in it.

"WHA? EY! GET BACK ERE' WITH MY BOAT!" Murdoc waved his arms around and then whipped his head back. "Those bastards stole my boat!"

"Well can ya' blame em' man? You only kidnapped em', then were prolly' gonna leave em' here ta' die." Russel rolled his eyes.

"Don't you have any other way?" Noodle asked.

"Er...wait...wait! I have the jet! Yeah! The sea plane near the other dock!"

The beach began to shake violently. They didn't have much time...

"Okay, where's 2D?" she asked.

"No use in findin' him; he's a fuckin' goner." Murdoc shook his head.

"What...what do you mean?!" Noodle grabbed his shirt.

Russel gasped.

"What?" Noodle looked at him.

"The whale Noods..."

Noodle's eyes suddenly went from fierce and cold...to worry. She let go of Murdoc's shirt.  
"No...no he's somewhere...he has to be." Noodle ran back over to Russel.

"Where are you lot going now?" Murdoc called.

"Man, where do ya' think?" Russel growled at him as he lifted Noodle onto his head.

"We're goin' after one of our own. Unlike you, we care about each otha'. Believe it or not."

Murdoc said nothing for a moment, then snorted.

"Pffft. Whatever. Cyborg! Let's go!"

Cyborg stood still, staring at the ground.

"Cyborg!" Murdoc barked. He looked and saw oil was dripping from her face.  
She suddenly began shaking violently as she lifted her head and looked up at Noodle.  
She grinned evilly and slowly lifted her guns, aiming at Noodle.

"Cyborg!" Murdoc ran at Cyborg and grabbed at her arm. Noodle spun around to see Cyborg twisting Murdoc's arm and holding him against her, now with the gun to his head, still smiling evilly.

"What...is w-wrong, Master?" she asked.

"Whoa...Cyborg...no need to be rash...put the gun down..."

Cyborg cocked the gun.

CLICK.

"Not Cyborg. Master." she grinned even bigger. Murdoc flinched. Well this was all backfiring...and fast.

"Put it down." Noodle held her gun up, aiming at the cyborg.

The two once again locked eyes, but Cyborg kept grinning.

"Noodle...you are me."

"Don't think so bitch. You are me. Don't get things mixed up. And don't mess with my family."

"Family? He abandoned you. He left you to die. He created me. I am in constant pain because of him. You have no idea what it's like."

Murdoc still didn't move. He was surprised at her sudden advance in speech...by herself...she was really malfunctioning badly.

"Oh really?" Noodle replied. "I was a test tube baby. So I think I have an idea. But all this talking about our pasts aside, put down the fucking gun and let Murdoc go."

"I am through with taking orders, especially from a clone."

Noodle's hold on her gun got tighter. "YOU are a clone. Look, I am sorry about what you've gone through...I can only imagine what Murdoc has probably put you through." she glared at him and then looked back at her.

"But killing everyone who upsets you will not make things go your way, even though it may feel gratifying at the time."

She couldn't believe this...was it possible...that the Cyborg actually gained a mind of her own?

"I do not care." Cyborg pressed the gun against Murdoc's temple. "I am the master now."

"NO!" Noodle shot at Cyborg's arm, releasing Murdoc.

"Arghhh!" Cyborg raised her other gun at Noodle, but didn't get a shot out, as Noodle was pelting her body with bullets. Finally, Noodle shot her straight between the eyes. Cyborg spazzed out and froze in place. Then she fell over like a stack of books. Noodle was breathing heavily...still grasping what she had just done. She was shaking...partially from fear...anger...and just a bit of guilt. The cyborg made no movement. She had indeed destroyed her.

Silence fell over the remaining three as the beach shook violently again. Murdoc lifted himself off of the ground, dusting the sand off of his pants. He looked down at his creation...what it had become. Now she was gone. He looked at Noodle, who was still looking at the "dead" cyborg. She looked up at him and caught his eye. They only looked at each other for a few seconds...until Noodle spoke up.

"No thanks are in order. Really." she said in a low and sarcastic voice. Murdoc turned away.

"Oh., you're gonna play that card, love? Save my life, but make me feel bad fer' not savin' yours?"

"Huh. You ignorant fool."

Murdoc looked up at her. She was nearly laughing. "You...haven't changed a single bit. You are still the same cold hearted, unfeeling bastard...no, correction. You are worse." she shook her head. "I almost feel sorry for you really."

"Oh really? Then why did you save me?"

The island began to shake...this time with no stopping in between intervals.

"We gotta get outta here!" Russel yelled.

Noodle suddenly thought of 2D. She quickly turned back to Russel and ran towards him, hopping back onto his head. She looked back to see Murdoc running towards the jet. She shook her head.

"Noods, forget him." Russel said.

Noodle closed her eyes, looking a bit stressed, and then opened them again.  
She held on tight to Russel as he quickly waded away from the island. They then saw Murdoc take off from the water on the seaplane, flying in the air above the crumbling beach. Noodle looked up at the plane, then back at the beach. They were getting farther and farther away now...then a large amount of explosions took place on the beach, blowing debris into the air. The force from the explosions still reach the two, but luckily Russel was big enough to withstand the aftermath. Noodle held on tightly and watched as the beach was destroyed, the rest of it sinking underneath the ocean. That was it. Plastic Beach was no more.

But now wasn't a time to rest easy.

"Russel! We have to find 2D!"

"Noods...there's no way D survived that..."

"No! He wasn't on the beach! He's lost at sea somewhere!"

"Wait...what? Noodle...what you talkin' about?"

"2D is alive!"

"Noodle...I know you don't wanna believe that he's-"

Noodle cut him off.. "No."

"...Noodle?"

"He is alive. I know he is."

"How...do you know?"

"I just...I know. I can...feel him."

Russel blinked. Okayyy.

"You...think I am crazy..."

"No! No...neva'..."

"I do not know how I know...or how I can feel his presence...but I can."

"Okay Noodle...I trust ya'...where should we go?"

"Mmm..." Noodle pulled out her compass. She glanced at it, looked up, then pointed ahead.

"North." she said.

Russel sighed. "Alright then. Let's go get 'im."

"Ackkkk!" 2D was kneeling down in his own vomit. Shit...this wasn't happening...shit...  
He curled up into a ball, cold, shaking, and suffering from severe anxiety. The floor underneath his was fleshy...it was dark...and it smelled. He was, in fact, inside of a whale. He didn't know whether to be horribly afraid, grateful that he was alive...or both. Probably both.  
What was happening? What was going to happen? Would he ever get out of here?

"Mmf!" 2D kept his eyes shut as his lip quivered. He had to pull himself together...there had to be a way out...there just had to be.


	2. Chapter 2

"'Ow did I get 'ere? Wrapped up in all this shit...fuck..."

2D lay on his back with his arms and legs sprawled out on the fleshy floor. It had already been hours, and he still hadn't moved from the spot he was in. He had, amazingly, calmed down a little bit, but not enough to actually move yet. He sighed heavily and was really itching for a damn cigarette already...but had none.

"I ain't...gonna get no where if I don' get up..." 2D slowly lifted himself up until he was sitting up. His foot hit something small. He dug around in his soaked pants pocket. "Mmmf!" 2D struggled to pull something out of his pocket. "Lil bugga'!" 2D pulled out his cigarette lighter and flicked it a couple of times until it caught. The area where 2D was sitting lit up, not much, just a faint dim light from the lighter, but it was better then nothing. 2D looked down at his feet and saw that he had kicked a small piece of driftwood. He reached for it and then put the flame to it, making a small torch, giving more light to the whale's insides. 2D stood to his feet, careful not to trip. He raised the torch and looked around. Yep. He was inside a whale alright.

So now what?

He turned around and raised the torch up to see behind him, more black. Was that the way to the mouth? Or was it to the stomach? He wanted to avoid the stomach...getting broken down and shat out. Then he'd really be a goner. He sighed. What was he going to do? Stuck in this smelly, dark, small place...he was surprised that he was not panicking as much as he should...and what happened back on the beach? The huge hand he briefly had seen? All of the commotion? What ended up happening to that awful place?

2D put his other hand on his chest.

For some odd reason, there was a very small, tugging feeling in his chest that he couldn't seem to get rid of...in fact, he'd dealt with this feeling for years now. It was never really prevalent until about, five, maybe six years ago? He had learned to deal with it, but now it seemed as if it was getting stronger, and a bit more annoying. It wasn't because he was scared, no, that was a completely different feeling in itself. He had seen many doctors about it, thinking it could be a heart problem, only to get told that they found nothing out of the ordinary from his usual issues.

He sighed ad gripped his sopping shirt.

Something weird always seemed to be happening to him. Sometimes he wondered why he couldn't just live a normal life. Sometimes he wondered...what if he wasn't in his dad's shop that night many years ago? What if his eyes were never knocked in? What if he had never met Murdoc or joined the band? How would his life had turned out? Not as 2D, but just as Stuart Pot? He had the money, the fun, the parties, the fame, the girls...but it all seemed to backfire as he was chained tighter to the band, and every time he tried to escape, he was always brought back to Gorillaz. And now look where he was, beat up, inside the belly of a whale, possibly staring death in the face. If this wasn't the shittiest day of his life, he didn't know what was.

Meanwhile, a huge Russel swam around the ocean, following Noodle's directions. Noodle sat on his head, staring ahead, occasionally looking back at her compass. She was dirty, her dress was tattered, and she had bruises on her face and arms. So far, nobody, and nothing was chasing them. It was odd really. She was so used to running...fighting for her life all of these years...and now...it was as if nothing happened.

"What's buggin' ya baby girl?" Russel spoke up.

Noodle looked up and snapped out of her thoughts. "Huh? What?"

"Something's buggin' ya...you alright?"

"Oh...yes..."

"Ah..." Russel was unconvinced.

Noodle sighed. "Russel?"

"What's up?"

"Have you...noticed it's...very calm out here at sea?"

"Well that normally seems ta' be the case..."

"I mean...there are no planes, no guns, missiles...nobody is chasing us."

"Well maybe we took em' all out?"

"No, I mean, nobody has been chasing...me."

"Whad'ya' mean Noods?"

"Well...for six years now, my life has been nothing but running and protecting myself; there have always been people and creatures sent by the Boogieman to kill me, and now, well...now I feel like it's all gone...Everything is done."

"Wow...ya' really think so?"

"I'm not exactly sure what Murdoc has done, but something has changed."

"Well...maybe that's a good thing huh?"

"Perhaps...but I'm not letting my guard down yet..."

"I unda'stand...so...Noodle?"

"Yes?"

"You...sure D is out there?"

Noodle was silent for a moment. The tugging on her heart was still there. She reached behind her for her backpack and stuck her hand inside, pulling out 2D's clown mask. It had floated up to the surface and washed up onto Russel's head earlier while they were swimming around.

"Why this mask, 2D?" she thought to herself, thinking of her own mask as well.

"Noods?" Russel asked again.

"Can we search a little more Russel?" she asked, eagerness in her voice.

"...Of course."

"...Thank you." she set the mask down and stood up.

"Let me know when you get tired?" she asked.

"Ah, I'm fine Noods. Great exa'cise right?" he joked.

Noodle didn't say anything, and Russel only sighed to himself. A lot has happened to her...she was a completely different person now. He didn't exactly know all that happened to her, but she was traumatized...even though she tried to hide it.

As for Noodle. what was she doing? Did she honestly believe 2D was still alive somewhere? Why was she going through all of this trouble? Maybe because Russel and 2D were the only family she ever really knew? Maybe...

Right now she couldn't say the same of Murdoc...as she was still very bitter towards him after all that has happened. There was so much she wanted to say that asshole...but it wasn't the appropriate time. What would happen after all of this?

Dark clouds slowly began to move in...

"Damn Noods, looks like a storms brewin'..."

"Yes...we have to hurry then."

That was thinking too far ahead...right now they had to find him.

Back inside of the whale, 2D sat back on the fleshy floor. He was exhausted to say the least...and for some reason it seemed as if it was getting harder to breathe inside this thing...his eyes got heavier...he just wanted to sleep...just for a little bit...like it mattered? Did it truly matter if he lived or died? Did anyone really even care? It's not like he was anything special...

He closed his eyes and let his mind shut off. As weird as it was, this is the most peace he has gotten in quite a while. At least if he was going to die, he would die peacefully.

Not even 10 minutes later, 2D slowly opened his eyes again. Suddenly he started to cough intensely.

"Ack! Bloody 'ell!" 2D jolted and stood up. He rubbed his eyes to help his vision clear up, only to see he was engulfed in smoke. He looked to see that he had erroneously set the torch down when he dozed off. Instead of setting it in the water, he had apparently set it on another piece of driftwood, setting it ablaze. And it wasn't a small piece like the torch...it was bigger, and spreading fast...it even lit the water on fire! 2D started to panic again. The whale may have swallowed him, but he also swallowed a lot of the shit Plastic Beach had lingering in it's waters, including spilled oil from the boats and planes taken out in the battle that was happening outside prior. 2D coughed even more, and thought it wise to get below the smoke, so he crouched back onto the ground. This was insane! It was as if a black cloud was following him around all day! Was he now going to get burned alive?

...Wait...fire? Whale?

He remembered reading the story when he was a kid; Pinocchio or something They built a fire inside the whale and the whale spit them out! And this was even worse then a tiny campfire. So maybe...

2D suddenly felt a jolt. Then suddenly a huge wave of water began to flood into the whale. 2D's eyes whitened as the wave smashed into him and took him away.

"Aghh!" was all 2D managed to cry out until he was pulled underneath the water.

"Russel look out!" Noodle yelled as the large whale surfaced.

Russel quickly turned around as the whale began to freak out. Out of it's mouth it spit water and pieces of a ship. Noodle looked closely and saw a human body flying through the air! It had blue hair too! Noodle watched as 2D's limp body smacked hard into the water. Noodle flinched as he hit the water. He floated for a few seconds, then began to sink underneath. He must have been knocked out by the hard fall. Without really thinking, Noodle took a dive into the water.

"Noods!" Russel called.

Noodle quickly swam deeper and deeper. She could hold her breath for a decently long time, but still needed to hurry. She searched around the water, trying to find 2D. It was hard trying to look around because the sea water was full of salt, and was stinging her eyes badly. Finally, she spotted a red shirt, and then the blue hair. She quickly swam over to 2D who was still sinking down into the dark of the sea. She reached his body, putting both arms around his skinny torso. At first, she started to sink down with him.

"Mmmf!" she struggled to get a better hold on him, for she never had expected him to be this heavy. She kicked her legs quickly and slowly began to make her way back up to the surface. But something was wrong...she felt something behind her.

The whale. It was coming after both of them. Noodle flinched before a giant hand gripped around the whale and lifted it out of the water.

"Thank you Russel." Noodle thought and quickly kicked to the surface; she was running out of breath.

Finally Noodle breached above the water, taking in a huge gasp of air and started coughing. Her eyes were red and stinging badly from the salt. She could barely see. She kept kicking her feet and tried her best to hold 2D above the water.

"Russel!" she called as she began to feel raindrops fall from the sky.

"I'm here baby doll!" Russel called as he scooped the two up into his hand. He looked down at them, Noodle specifically.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I-I cannot see..."

"What?" Russel sounded worried.

"No...I can...I just cannot open my eyes...they burn from the salt water..."

"Aw man...and what's up with D? He's way out of it Noods..."

"Please hand me my bag." Noodle held out a shaky hand, her eyes still tightly shut. Russel picked up the tiny backpack with his finger tips and handed it to Noodle. She blindly rummaged through it until she pulled out a canteen of fresh water. She opened it and dumped some of the water on her face and in her eyes, attempting to clean out the salt. After a few minutes, the burning began to subside, and she was able to see a little better.  
At that point the rain was beating down harder and Russel began to look uneasy.

"Noodle, there's a real storm headed this way...we need ta' go and now!"

"Right! Place me and 2D on your head!" Noodle called over the rain and wind. Russel did so, but was careful so they wouldn't slip off. Russel then dipped down and began to swim as fast as he could.

Meanwhile, Noodle gently laid 2D down.

"2D?" she shook him gently.

No response.

"Hey! 2D!" she gently slapped his face.

Still no response.

"Shit!" Noodle began pumping at his chest, beginning CPR. She breathed into his mouth, trying to help him breathe again.

"Come on 2D...you can do this...come on!" she pumped at his chest again, and gave a breath into his mouth.

2D suddenly jolted forward and choked up huge amounts of water, gasping for air in the process. He kept coughing violently, before he got dizzy and fell backwards again.

"2D?" Noodle gently put his face in her hands.

"Ehhhh...nuh..." he moaned under his breath.

He was breathing again.

Noodle sighed with relief. He was breathing. He was just really weak and tired. She gently put his head on her lap and brushed his hair out of his face.

2D began to breathe more steadily now...he felt so exhausted. He felt drops of water hit his face...slowly, he opened his eyes to see...a girl? There was a girl looking at him. She was very pretty...with lovely eyes...she looked Asian...she had bruises on her face though...something about her was...familiar...

2D was still way out of it, for he couldn't even keep his eyes open for much longer then a few seconds, before his head slumped to the side again.

"Mermaid..." was all he whispered, leaving a very puzzled look on Noodle's face.

"O...kay..." she raised an eyebrow.

Regardless, she was glad that he was alright...for now. Noodle tied her mask back around her face and looked ahead at the rough waters. Somehow, she knew this would not end well. They were heading right into the storm.


	3. Chapter 3

The three were heading straight into the storm. The waves were getting rough and the wind was getting stronger.

"Mmf!" Noodle struggled to stay put on Russel's head, and at the same time tried to hold onto 2D.

"Hold on tight ya'll!" Russel yelled over the storm as Noodle held on tight to 2D.

"Ughh..." 2D's eyes opened slowly to rain falling hard on him. "Huh?" he looked up to see a masked stranger holding onto him. Where was he? Who was this? He began to freak out, for he had had just about enough for today.

"N-NO!" 2D squirmed and broke away from Noodle. He sat up, only to realize he was stranded. Before he could look around and think, Noodle grabbed his arm and pulled him back, forcing him to sit down.

"S-STOP! Please lemme' go!" he yelled over the storm, still trying to escape Noodle's grip.

"2D STOP!" she yelled and grabbed his face, having him look at her.

Wait...this girl knew his name...?

He stared straight into the Oni mask. Both were silent for a moment. 2D looked down. He was on a head. What the fuck was going on? Wait...

"R-Russel?" 2D called down to him.

"Long time no see D!"

"Wha-what? 'Ow did I..? Wha'?" 2D's head was beginning to hurt from all of the confusion.

"Quit yo' blabberin' and just hang on man!" Russel called. "Stay close to Noodle! She don't need ta' dive in afta' you again!"

2D turned his face back to the mask.

"...N-Noodle?"

Noodle said nothing, just gently held his face in her hands.

2D moved his hands to her face, hesitated, and then went to lift her mask. Noodle's hands moved to his wrists, of which she gripped hard, warning him not to touch her mask.

2D flinched.

"No." she said sternly.

"Ow' do I know...yer' really Noodle?" he asked.

"That's a...stupid thing to say." she answered.

2D looked down...then back up at her. The feeling in his chest was strong. "No...yew are Noodle...I know it."

Noodle's grip loosened up. "How do you know then?" she asked, this time in a softer tone of voice.

"I..."

The conversation was quickly broken when a huge wave crashed against Russel.

"HANG ONNN!" Russel yelled.

The two struggled to stay on, as both of them grabbed onto each other. Noodle looked ahead to see an even bigger wave...almost as big as a tsunami. Her eyes widened under her mask.

"2D! That wave will knock us off for sure!" she called over the storm. 2D looked at the wave and panicked.

"Wha'da we do?" he freaked out.

Noodle took 2D's hand and held it tight. "We will be thrown into the water...but we have to try and stay together, so don't let go of my hand if you can help it?" she gripped his hand tightly.  
2D looked at her and squeezed her hand back. He swallowed hard and nodded nervously.  
They both looked at the huge wave coming at them. 2D flinched and tightened his grip on Noodle's hand as the wave crashed over them, pushing Russel over and knocking them both into the sea.

The current in the water was very strong and the two struggled to hold onto each other. 2D squirmed around in the water, holding his breath and trying to grab Noodle's other hand. She reach for him as well and struggled to stay close to him. Finally the two reached each other and grabbed each other's opposite hand. As 2D tried to pull Noodle towards him, he felt like she was getting pulled away from him. The current was too strong, and Noodle slipped right out of 2D's grip.

"Noo!" 2D yelled underneath the water as Noodle was taken away by the undertow.

Noodle desperately tried to swim up, but the current kept pulling her under. She was losing breath fast...she was just so tired...

Meanwhile 2D mustered up some strength and swam to the surface. He emerged from the water while gasping for air as the storm still happened all around him. The waves tossed around as he floated around, looking everywhere for Noodle.

"Noodleeee!" he screamed. He looked around frantically, when he spotted something floating a few feet away from him. It was Noodle's Oni mask! He gasped and began to swim over to it, when he suddenly saw Noodle emerge from the water. She gasped for air and tried to stay afloat, but she was so exhausted, her legs wouldn't hold out. Her eyes got heavy as she began to sink into the ocean again. 2D saw this and swam faster towards her.

"N-no! No no no!" he managed to grab Noodle and pull her up before her whole head went under.

"Mmmf!" 2D struggled to hold her up, but somehow found the strength to hold her up to where her head was staying above the water. Noodle coughed up some water, then slumped her head to the side. 2D held her in his arms, trying to figure out what to do in the midst of all of the chaos around them.

"Noodle! What should we do now?" he asked.

She didn't respond.

"Eyyy c'mon Noodle! Dun' do dis'!"

He shook her a bit, then lightly nudged her face.

"C'mon stay wif me love..."

Noodle opened her eyes and looked at 2D, groaning softly.

2D sighed with relief.

"Noods..."

"2D...I'm so tired..." her eyes were bloodshot and barely open. her face was covered in cuts and bruises. He had a better look at her face now, it was the face he had seen earlier. It really was her.

"Dun' worry Noods! I gotcha!" 2D was somehow able to get Noodle to move onto his back. She weakly wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Hold on love!" he began swimming...struggling because of Noodle's weight on his back...but swimming. He didn't know where he was going, or what he was doing...or if they were going to live or die...but Noodle had saved his life...so he had to find a way to save hers. He had no idea where he acquired all of this courage all of the sudden, and the fact that he was still shaking in his boots...but he couldn't just sit there. He kept swimming around as the waves continued to toss the two around. 2D was already starting to get tired. 2D's breaths got heavier and heavier as the rain fell harder. He could feel himself begin to sink at certain points, but quickly tried again to stay up for Noodle's sake.

Then he felt it.

He felt a force so strong smash up against the back of him, he couldn't even describe it. It knocked Noodle right off of him, then completely submerged him in the water. He didn't even have time to scream.

As the waves continued to toss 2D around, he frantically tried to swim...to the right, left, up...anywhere that wasn't taking him downward. He then felt himself get pushed forward, the force pulling him getting stronger and stronger. As he got pushed into this unknown area, he felt his feet run through...sand?

The water was getting more shallow! Meaning he was getting pushed towards land! 2D then stopped fighting the waves and let them carry him to shore. He was roughly washed up onto a beach by the waves, where his face hit the sand.

"Aghh!" he groaned as he smacked against the wet sand. He lay there for a few minutes, trying to catch his breath and find the strength to move again. His breaths began to get more calm...and the waves began to lap more gently at the shore. He turned over and looked up at the sky. The storm was heading away, and the sunset was beginning to flood the sky in orange. 2D couldn't help but stare at it...for it was absolutely lovely...

As the water gently caressed his feet, he suddenly remembered Noodle. He gasped and shot up. His boots were full of water and sand, so he quickly removed them. He got to his feet and shaded his eyes, looking out to sea. He looked all around...but couldn't find any trace of Noodle or Russel. He scanned the shore...nothing. A look of pain crossed his face.

She was gone.

2D couldn't move. His heart began to hurt a lot. He couldn't save her...she saved his life...and yet he couldn't even get her to shore. He felt so weak...

He put his hands to his face, trying to pull himself together.

He couldn't stay here...wherever he was. He looked around at his surroundings. The island was pretty it's own right. Not as rich with greenery or trees, the shore seemed like it had mostly rocky paths and hills in the distance. The shore was sandy and rocky, and some trees, but they were scarce...where was he? He decided to keep walking along the shoreline and search around to see if, by some miracle, there was a chance of civilization out there. So he began walking.

Meanwhile, Russel waded his way to shore on the opposite side of the same island 2D had washed up on. He noticed the beaches had people on them...some were leaving to go home for the day, and some were still laying on the beach or out in the water. As he reluctantly made his way to shore, knowing the reaction he would get from people about his huge size.

2D continued to walk. He'd been walking for about thirty minutes now...or so he estimated, since there was no way to tell time, except by the sun, which he really wasn't good at doing anyway. The sun was still setting, still lingering right over the sea like a huge orange bulb. 2D sighed. He looked down at his body. His clothes were still damp, a bit more dry then before though. They were tattered and all messed up from being tossed around so much. He had no shoes, and although he had only been walking for half an hour, his feet were aching from all of the walking. There was dried blood under his nose and bruises all over his body from being smacked around. It was going to be dark soon...and still no sign of civilization. He closed his eyes and sighed again. He decided to sit down on the shore, looking out at the sea. His thoughts were going everywhere...he was not calm at all...even if he seemed like it on the outside. He thought of Noodle. Seeing her face...the joy and relief he felt seeing her alive again. She was his little pal; his mate...he thought she was gone...but she was alive this whole time. Then she was gone...torn away in a matter of seconds.

He felt tears start to well in his eyes.

He sniffled, then almost angrily wiped them away. Really? He was crying? What a wimp he was. 2D was silent, only hearing the sounds of the waves lapping at his legs and the seagulls above.

Then...something weird.

2D had a strange feeling to look to his right...as if he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to see a huge flock of seagulls wandering around on the beach. He observed the seagulls as they landed temporarily, then flew away again. The suddenly, almost all of the seagulls ascended, nearly all at once, up into the sky. 2D thought it was a marvelous sight. He looked back down the shore where there were only a few seagulls left, and, to his surprise, he spotted something unusual. He sat up more and shielded his eyes with his hand. He squinted hard and realized that he was looking at...a person! It was a person lying face down in the sand! He stood up and began walking towards the person. He looked harder...it was a girl. She had black hair highlighted with...purple...

She had on a white dress...with stripped stockings.

2D's eyes widened.

Noodle.

2D began to run towards Noodle's limp body, nearly tripping in the sand. Even though his feet hurt, he made himself run faster. He was almost to her, scaring away the remaining seagulls. He slid onto his knees and quickly knelt beside Noodle.

"Noodle!" he looked down at her...she was soaking wet, as if she had just gotten washed up to shore. He gently turned her over onto her back. Her eyes were closed and she didn't seem to be breathing. 2D was frantic. He picked Noodle up and carried her up onto the shore near a few trees. He sat in the sand under a tree and laid Noodle onto the sand.

"Noodle? C'mon Noods! Um...oh God...bloody 'ell..." He had no idea whatsoever to do...he didn't even know CPR...so he did the only thing he could think of...

He lifted Noodle into a sitting position and held his hand up. He hesitated.

"I'm sorry Noods." was all he said before slapping her in the back with a loud "SMACK!"

"AGHHH!" Noodle screamed as she choked up tons of sea water. She began coughing and choking some more, then vomiting. She got on her knees as she vomited into the sand, still coughing. Then she moaned and fell over onto her side. 2D quickly rushed over to her and turned her over, holding her close in his arms.

"Noodle? Noodle?" 2D gently shook her.

"Mmmm..." Noodle moaned softly as she slowly opened her eyes. "...2D?"

2D sighed with relief. "Yeah."

"You're...here..." Noodle said weakly.

2D only gave a small smile.

"Where...are we?"

"I'm not sure..." he looked down at Noodle who was looking into his eyes.

"I'm...so happy that you are alright..." she managed to crack a small smile...it was the sweetest little thing 2D had seen in a while.

"Noodle..." he held her close and locked her in a tight hug, catching her off guard a bit.  
"2D..."

"Ow' did you survive tha' windmill crash?"

"Oh...that...I got lucky I guess." she smiled again.

2D hugged her tighter, his arm were still shaky. "I..." 2D stuttered.

"Are you alright?" Noodle asked weakly.

"...I missed yew..." 2D said quietly.

Noodle put her arms around 2D's neck and hugged him tightly.

"Oh hush now..." she whispered as she snuggled her head into his chest.

2D only smiled. "Noodle?"

"What is it?"

"Is it all ova'?"

"...Yes. It's all over 2D."

"...Good."

The two stayed in each other's arms...neither really felt like moving at the moment. They were just happy to be alive... and happy to see each other again. And the nagging feeling both had in their chests earlier had disappeared completely. 2D felt like a huge weight was lifted off of his heart. All of these years he thought little Noodle was gone...but she had been alive all along. Here was Noodle, his little mate, laying awake in his arms. Even though she wasn't so little anymore, she was still like a little sister to him...and definitely one of his closest friends, if not, his closest.

Although Noodle didn't say much, she was so happy to be in the arms of her best friend. After all the hell she'd been through...somehow...being in the presence of 2D seemed to calm her. Oh she was still angry about many things; with the band and especially Murdoc, but having 2D there with her, for some reason, made everything okay, at least for a moment.

"You know, between you and me...I missed you too..." Noodle said softly.  
2D just smiled and kept holding Noodle. After everything that had happened today, they were here.

They were alive.

And nothing could take them away from this moment.


	4. Chapter 4

"Oh shit." Noodle muttered under her breath as she leaned up against the trunk of a shady palm tree. Her dress was torn from her shoulder to her hip.  
"Yew awright Noods?" 2D was standing up, looking out at the sea, as if trying to see if there was anyone out there that could help them. He turned back around to see Noodle tearing off her dress forcefully. 2D blushed at the sight of Noodle in nothing but her bra, red short shorts and stockings. He had forgotten that Noodle was all, well, grown up now. He looked down at his feet; it was weird looking at her like that.  
Noodle sighed and lifted herself up from the ground, only to feel a horrible sharp ache run through her right ankle and foot.  
"Agh!" Noodle stumbled and grabbed onto the tree.  
"Noodle!" 2D quickly went to her side and put his arms around her sides, helping her stand.  
"Was' wrong?"  
Noodle flinched in pain. "It's my ankle…but I'm fine 2D, really…"  
2D only looked at her with worry and slowly removed his arms from around her as she tried to stand up straight again.  
"Mmf!" Noodle's ankle gave out and she fell back onto the ground.  
2D quickly knelt down beside her as she leaned up against the tree, her face in pain. 2D looked at her ankle and saw that it was purple and swollen.  
"Noods I fink it's broken." 2D looked up with worry in his eyes.  
"Most likely." Noodle grunted in pain.  
They needed to find help, and quick. They couldn't't stay here. 2D removed his two shirts and wrapped his long sleeved shirt around his waste due to the heat.  
"Here." 2D handed his red t-shirt to Noodle. "It's still a bit damp, but yew should cover up…sunburn blows."  
Noodle looked up at 2D. "Thank you." She said softly and threw his large shirt over her head and onto her tiny frame. 2D crouched down facing Noodle.  
"Ere', put yer' arms around me. I'll carry yew."  
"2D, you must be exhausted, you don't have to carry me…"  
"We need ta' get yer'foot fixed up…and we can't stay ere'."  
Noodle sighed. "You are right..." She put her arms around 2D's neck as he scooped her up into his arms.  
"Er, if yer' not comfta'ble wif me, I could carry yew on my back if yew wan'…"  
"No, this is fine. Thank you." Noodle said softly as she closed her eyes and rested her head against 2D's bare chest as he began walking.  
"You'll be awright love, I owe yew one."  
Noodle couldn't't help but feel a flood of warmth run through her body. Even after all this time 2D treated her the same. He had a big heart; sure he was still as dim as ever, but he was being very brave throughout this whole situation. He still treated her like a little sister and was even trying his best to take care of her. She couldn't't help but find it cute. Noodle then managed to crack a small smile, without 2D noticing of course. It almost hurt her face to smile, for it's been so long since she has done so.  
2D made his way down the shoreline, not wanting to wander too far away from the water, since he had a knack for getting lost. And Noodle was in too much pain, he didn't't want to bother her. The sun was barely lingering over the sea in the distance as 2D squinted at it. Half of it was still over the ocean, sort of reminding him of a cookie being dunked in milk…a really bright, orange cookie…?  
Well that meant it was going to be dark soon…which somewhat worried him. What would happen once it got too dark? Would they keep walking? No, that wouldn't't be a good idea…what if they got even more lost then they already were? And what about food and water? And Noodle's ankle? It was already purple and swollen…  
2D sighed. He hoped beyond hoped that there was civilization somewhere on this island…or wherever they were. He kept walking, making sure he paid attention to where he was, as well as he could anyway.  
"Ow' yew holdin' out?" 2D asked softly after about 20 minutes of silence between them.  
"My foot hurts…and I don't feel so well."  
2D looked down at Noodle. She was practically limp in his arms. Her foot was swollen up like a balloon now. Poor thing…she was so battered and bruised…like the ocean had beaten her to a pulp. No…like life had beaten her.  
"2D…maybe we should stop."  
"Wha?"  
"It's getting dark…and you need to rest." Her voice was tired and dry.  
"I can go for a lil' longer…really…"  
"2D please…"  
2D sighed reluctantly. "Awright then…" 2D stopped and looked around. About 15 feet up shore was a very small cluster of palm trees. That would be good, not too far from shore.  
2D carried her up to the trees and gently set her down into the soft sand as a small whimper escaped her lips.  
She really felt embarrassed; being carried around like this, hurting because of an ankle injury…  
2D sat down next to her and looked out at the sea. Night was falling now, with the moon beginning to rise. He sighed and looked down at himself. He looked like complete and utter shit. Then he looked at Noodle, who looked ten times worse. What was going to happen now? Would they ever find civilization? Would they have enough strength to go on again? And what would happen tomorrow?  
"Are you alright?" Noodle's voice was quiet and horse, probably from a lack of water.  
2D looked down at her again."I'm…I dunno…" he sighed.  
Noodle gently took his hand and managed to crack a smile.  
"It will be okay…"  
2D shut his eyes, feeling a headache coming on. He then fell back onto the sand next to Noodle, staring up at the sky. The moon was higher now, and very beautiful.  
"Fank yew…" he spoke up.  
Noodle turned her head and blinked.  
"Fank yew fer'…savin' my life…"  
Everything was quiet for a moment, aside from the waves lapping against the shore. After not hearing a response from Noodle, 2D turned his head, only to see Noodle scooting closer to him, and then lifting her head and resting it onto 2D's chest.  
"You scared me you know…" she whispered. "I thought you had drowned."  
2D continued looking up at the sky.  
"Well…we 'fought yew had crashed…wha' appened?"  
"I got lucky I suppose…"  
"Yeah, you said tha'...I 'fought yew were gone..."  
"I suppose I should have called huh?" she said, half joking.  
"Yew 'fink?" 2D managed to let out a laugh. At this point, he didn't care about what happened five years ago. All he wanted to focus on was the now; Noodle surviving now and getting to safety. He noticed her face. She was in so much pain, obviously trying to hold back tears; trying to be tough.  
"Here..." 2D sat up and unwrapped his long sleeved shirt from around his waist. He ripped off one of the sleeves and began to wrap it around her ankle.  
"Agh!" a moan of pain finally escaped her lips. "Don't touch it!" she was frustrated.  
"Noods yew gotta at least wrap it up..." 2D felt bad that he was contributing to her pain, but if her ankle really was broken, it was best to keep it in place best they could.  
"Mmmf!" she whimpered as 2D finished wrapping it tight, but not too tight that it was unbearable.  
2D leaned up against the tree Noodle was laying under. She laid her head in his lap again, this time looking a bit worse then before. After a minute of calming down, she relaxed a bit more.  
"Where did you learn how to do that?"  
"Do what?"  
"The little bandage job there..."  
"Oh, uh, well when ya' live wif' Murdoc ya' kinda hav' ta' know how ta' do these 'fings..."  
"Oh...it must have sucked huh? Being stuck on that little island all day..."  
2D didn't even want to think about the last two miserable and wasted years of his life.  
"Er, yeah, well, I'm jus' 'appy it's over..."  
"Life is funny...You think you have all the control, when in all actuality, you really do not.. By some miracle you are still alive, only to be stuck on some beach with no sign of any civilization to die anyway." Noodle didn't move, only continued to stare up at the sky. 2D wrinkled his forehead, not quite sure how to respond. It was not like Noodle to be talking so darkly, but then again, she seemed to have changed a lot.  
"Ey...come on, dun' say that...s'gonna be awright. You'll see..." 2D gently pushed the fringe back from over her eyes as she looked up at him with tired eyes.  
"How 'bout yew get some sleep, 'kay? Yew look beat."  
"Yeah...I guess so..." her eyes were heavy, and it wasn't long before her eyes were closed and she was slowly dozing off.  
"S'gonna be awright..."  
In truth, 2D had no idea whether or not things were going to be alright, whether they would live or die. He only said that to help Noodle feel somewhat okay...to lighten the dark situation they were in, have been in for years now.  
2D's stomach began to grumble. He hadn't eaten in a couple of days. He leaned his head back against the tree. His feet were finally starting to hurt, sore from walking barefoot on the hot and rocky beach. Were they on another deserted island of sorts? That's what it seemed like. And if that was the case then they really didn't have much hope.  
2D tried to stay awake...alive. They both had fought death and won today, but for how long? Was it all in vain? Maybe the sea should have swallowed them both; it would have been better than this.  
As much as he tried to stay awake, he was soon out like a light.

It didn't even feel like twenty minutes when 2D's eyes shot open. He gasped and whipped his head forward. The sun was high in the sky; it must have been noon, or very close to it anyway. The only sound heard was the lapping of the waves on the shore and the seagulls overhead. 2D quickly looked down. She was still there, her head in his lap. She was breathing softly, still sleeping heavily. 2D glanced at her foot. It looked way worse than yesterday. 2D's eyes drooped with worry. For a while, he just sat there, trying to think of what more he could do. The heat was unbearable at this point, even with what little shade they had.  
"Bloody hell..." he grumbled, sitting up more. At that point, all he did was stare out at the water. Miles and miles of the deep blue, the calmest he's ever seen it in a while. Minutes passed, his eyes still fixated on the ocean. He must have been spaced out for about ten minutes before something caught his eye. Something out of the corner of his eye as a matter of fact. 2D turned his head, looking dazed and confused. "Huh?"  
Coming around one of the rocky cliffs was a small boat. 2D shook his head and rubbed his eyes. It was a boat. He could make out a few tanned men on board with dark hair. Something else came around the cliff.  
A huge man.  
"Russel?" 2D couldn't believe his eyes. He went to call Russel's name, but his throat was so dry that not much came out. He looked down at Noodle, who was still sleeping.  
"Hey...hey Noods!" he gently shook her shoulder.  
"Mmm...huh?" Noodle squinted, trying to open her eyes. "2D, what's wrong?" she asked, tiredness still in her voice.  
"We gotta go!" 2D quickly stood up, stumbling a bit at first, then scooping Noodle up in his arms.  
"Mmmf! 2D! What's going on?" she asked, flinching in pain as her body ached and pain shot from her ankle through her leg.  
"Dun' worry, I gotcha." he said, hurrying down to the shore.  
"Wha?" Noodle turned her head towards the shore and saw the boat, as well as Russel.  
2D coughed and tried to clear is throat. "EYYY! OVER HERE! RUSSEL!" 2D managed to yell, his voice scratchy.  
Russel looked 2D's way and saw them.  
"Over there!" Russel pointed with his large index finger in 2D and Noodle's direction. One of the three men turned the helm of the boat in their direction. 2D jumped up and down, still holding Noodle in his arms. He had a huge smile on his face as well as a very noticeable look of relief. He really wasn't sure whether or not they would get out of this alive, but there they were, getting rescued. Noodle barely turned her head towards Russel, who was wading his way over to shore. She looked back up at the sky as the sunlight washed over her.  
It was over. Finally, it was all over. She could finally rest.  
"Noodle!"  
A voice made it's way into her head. She opened her eyes to see 2D, smiling big, despite his beat up face full of cuts and bruises. He moved his mouth again.  
"We're saved Noods! Did ya' see!" 2D smiled big, showing the gap in his teeth.  
Noodle smiled at him. It was a very tired smile, but sweet. And one of the most real smiles he's seen on her since they first met again. But then her eyes closed, and her head rolled back. Suddenly she was much more heavy in his arms. 2D's smile quickly faded away as he tried to shake Noodle awake. All of the sudden it was like slow motion.  
2D was mouthing the words, but felt like no sound was leaving his lips. He kept saying her name over and over again, shaking her, trying to get her to wake up.  
He ran out into the water, wading out as far as he could while holding her tight. As the boat came out to meet him, so did Russel.  
"Russel, Noodle needs help!" 2D squeaked, a bit out of breath. Russel looked down at Noodle, his face full of worry, and even a bit of sadness.  
"Is she dead?" 2D held out her limp body to Russel.  
Russel looked at her, still feeling horrible.  
"No. But you're right D; she does need help." he held out his large hands as 2D set her body into his palms. He quickly but gently handed her to two of the men on the boat. They set her inside the boat below on a cot out of the heat. 2D climbed on, leaving watery footprints traced with some blood on the deck. His feet were really stinging now due to the open cuts and blisters mixed with the salt water.  
"2D."  
2D turned to Russel, who sounded as worried as ever, yet could still manage to keep a straight face.  
"Stay by her, ya' know, until we reach where we need ta' be?"  
2D only nodded quickly and went below deck where Noodle was laying. 2D sat in a chair next to the bed, relieved to be off of his feet. He felt pretty fucked up right now, and probably looked it too. He didn't know where they were going, or how Russel just so happened to be in the same vicinity as they were, but all he knew was he couldn't wait to see civilization again. But more then anything, he wanted Noodle somewhere safe where she could get help.  
"Poor kid..." 2D brushed the fringe from her eyes again. He looked at her. She wasn't a kid anymore. Not a little girl, but a woman. It was weird seeing her all grown up, as if time just skipped over.  
He rested his arm on the side of the bed, his hand close to hers, where he sat in the chair, just sitting and waiting. Suddenly, he felt something. He looked down at his hand to see her little one barely grabbing onto his. He quickly looked at her. She was looking right at him, her eyes barely open, the bruise on the side of her face more visible now.  
2D quickly enveloped his big hand over her tiny one and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She barely squeezed back before shutting her eyes again.  
"Toochi..." was all she whispered.  
Memories flooded back to him. She hadn't called him by that nickname in years. No matter how grown up she was now, she would always be little Noodle.  
He held her hand until the reached their destination.


	5. Chapter 5

She kept falling. She reached out her hand, but there was nothing to grab onto. Nothing at all…

"Ahh!" Noodle opened her eyes quickly. Her heart was beating fast, and she could hear the sound of her own breath. At first she couldn't figure out where she was, and for a moment, she had forgotten where she was. She sat up and felt a small throb go through her right leg. But it was a dull pain, followed by the room spinning around her.

"Mmm…" she put a hand to her forehead, trying to adjust to her surroundings, when she saw there was an I.V in her arm. She followed the tubing to a bag of fluid that was hanging from a rack next to her bed. She was in a hospital. And on a morphine drip.

"Ughh…" Noodle squinted her eyes shut for a moment, and then opened them, trying to adjust to everything while the strong drug pumped through her. She pulled back the bed sheets to find she was in a hospital gown with bandages wrapped around her right ankle and foot. She found other places on her body where bandages and wraps were placed; leaving her cuts and wounds to heal.

She remembered now. Everything that happened with Plastic Beach, Murdoc fleeing, the Cyborg….and then getting separated from Russel, 2D finding her….she thought they were going to die for sure. But men in boats found them…and Russel. After that everything was blank. She must have passed out. And now here she was.

She leaned back onto her pillow again and sighed. What a day it had been.  
At that moment, her door opened and in came a female doctor followed by a nurse. The doctor had brown skin and dark hair pulled back with pins with a clipboard in hand. As she entered, she noticed Noodle was awake, staring at her.

"Oh! You startled me Miss Suzuki!" she laughed a little.

"I am sorry…" Noodle said hoarsely. She tried to clear her throat.

"Here let get you some water dear." The nurse went over to a tray that sat next to Noodle's bed where a pitcher of water and a cup was and poured her a glass of water. The nurse handed it the Noodle, who down it in seconds. After wiping the water from her lip, she looked up at the nurse.

"Thank you…um…"

"Just call me Lani." the nurse smiled.

"I see you finally woke up." The doctor smiled as well.

"Yeah….how long was I out for? A few hours?"

"Oh no honey, you were out for a couple of days."

Noodle's eyes widened. "A couple of days?"

"Well yes. Your fatigue really took a toll on your health. Your body really needed the rest."

Noodle thought about it. The days prior to finding Plastic Beach were full of little to no sleep. She was always on edge, which caused her to stay awake on most nights.

"My name is Doctor Maleke. How are you feeling today?"

"Well I suppose….still a little tired."

"Well we checked your vitals earlier and everything is looking good. Your injuries are pretty minor, with the exception of your right ankle and left wrist. You have a hairline fracture to the wrist and your ankle has a 3rd degree sprain. The swelling went down in the ankle, but its best that you stay off of it for at least 3 weeks, depending on how long it takes to heal. You need to keep it elevated and ice it frequently, alright dear?"

Noodle nodded as Lani went around to take out the Morphine drip. "I prescribed you some pain killers, so if the pain is too much to bear, you can take those, alright?"

Noodle nodded again, still trying to take everything in, and noticing her bandaged wrist for the first time.

"Any other questions Suzuki?"

It took Noodle a moment to respond, as she wasn't used to responding to her real name.

"Um, if it's not too much trouble, can you tell me where I am?"

Doctor Maleke and Nurse Lani looked at each other for a moment.

"You are at Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu, O'ahu."Nurse Lani smiled.

"Hawaii?" Noodle was trying to wrap her mind around how she got to Hawaii.

"My husband is a fisherman. He was on one of the boats that found you and your friend. Believe it or not you were on one of the far sides of Ni'ihau. Not many people live in those parts, and is usually always getting hit by rain and storms, which is probably how you and your friend managed to wash up on the shores. Your friend searched high and low to find you, and to be honest his size help a lot."

Russel.

Noodle sat up again. What a small world.

"Anyway, you are free to leave today Miss Suzuki. A friend of yours is here to pick you up."

At that moment, there was a small knock on the door, and 2D's head peaked in.

"Ah, Mr. Pot, just in time. Come on in, don't be shy." Doctor Maleke smiled, and the nurse had to double take at the thing that was 2D…with his eye sockets and all. She really had seen it all today….

Noodle felt some form of relief as 2D walked into the room. For some reason it helped to see someone she knew.

"Alright, you are all set dear. I'll write you a prescription for the pills and you can pick them up at the front before you leave. Remember to get plenty of rest and prop that ankle up okay? And keep icing that bruise too." She pointed to her eye, reminding Noodle about the other bruise on her own eye.

"Any more questions?"

"Yes…how should I go about paying for all of this?" Noodle asked.

"Oh you are already covered. A Mr. Hobbs was nice enough to take care of all of your treatments and bills."

Noodle laid back as the doctor and nurse left the room. Russel to the rescue again. She really owed him one…Then she remembered 2D was there, and he was holding a brown paper bag from some clothing store.

"Russel asked me to come get you and uh, help you get situated. Said he'd come help you himself but he's, well, too big ya know?"

"Oh…well thank you 2D." Noodle said softly. She looked at the bag. "What is that?"

"Oh! Russel got you some new clothes to change into…"

Noodle was struggling to sit up in the bed, as her ankle was becoming a burden on her.  
She hated asking for help, but what could she do?

"Help me out?" she asked 2D as she tried to sit up all the way. 2D hurried over as she manually tried to move her ankle over the side of the bed without hurting it too much, when she almost lost her balance and nearly fell off of the bed…if it wasn't for 2D catching her and helping her sit up, her legs now swung over her bedside. 2D held her up under her arms, and when he was sure she was okay to sit up on her own, her slowly removed his arms from under her. Their faces were close, and he could see the sadness and frustration in hers.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm helpless…" she said quietly, not looking at him, but down at the floor.

2D couldn't help but feel bad for her.

"Oh come on now…" he put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to look up at him. "You ain't helpless…you just gotta heal up first. It'll be alright love."

Noodle said nothing, only looked down in her lap.

2D frowned and knew his words weren't helping. He handed her the bag. "Here…should I get someone ta' help you?"

Noodle took the bag of clothes. "No, I can do it on my own." She said firmly.

"Okay…jus' let me know when yer' ready…." 2D hesitated, and then stepped aside, closing the curtain between them. He didn't want to leave the room unless she really did need help.

Noodle opened the brown bag to find a pair of denim shorts, a yellow loose fitted t-shirt, and some undergarments, along with a pair of black flip flops. Okay. She could do this. She went to stand, but the pressure on her ankle was too much, causing her to groan aloud and fall back onto the bed.

"You alright?" 2D asked, frantically standing up.

"I'm fine!" she called back. Well that wasn't going to work. She would have to get dressed in bed. She removed the hospital gown and slipped on a bra and some panties. Easy enough. Next she pulled the shirt over her, finding it somewhat difficult due to her wrist, but not too difficult. Next she laid back went to pull on the shorts, struggling a bit this time. 2D could hear the bed moving as Noodle tried to dress herself. After a few minutes, Noodle was finally fully dressed, and pinned her greasy hair back. She really needed a shower…

"Okay, I'm ready."

2D pulled back the curtain to see Noodle fully dressed and sitting on the side of the bed. It was still a bit strange to him seeing her so grown up after all these years. She grew up to be quite beautiful, yet looked so scarred and sad. Though he was happy to see her, it was sad to look at her these days.

As they checked out of the hospital, Noodle had been given crutches to walk with due to the poor state of her ankle. However she was having a hard time getting used to them due to her weak state. She struggled to stand, nearly falling all over again, when 2D ran out to catch her in his arms. Frustrated, she tried again, the nurses directing her. After a few minutes, she was able to walk all by herself with the crutches. Noodle walked outside of the hospital, with 2D close by to make sure she wouldn't fall, to see the busy and bustling city of Honolulu. It was quite a site with all of the tourists and pretty scenery beyond the city. Distracted by the sites, Noodle jumped a little when 2D tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to see a taxi cab on the side of the road. 2D helped her inside the cab, putting her crutches into the trunk. He gave the cab driver some address and they drove off through the city.

After looking out the window for about 10 minutes, Noodle noticed they were leaving the city. She then turns to 2D.

"Where are we going?"

"Uh, home…er, well, home for now anyway."

Noodle raised an eyebrow at him, but before she could say anything else, they arrived at their destination. Noodle looked out the window again to see a big and beautiful beach house, on a block with other big beach houses. Not too far in the distance was a beautiful beach with clear blue waters and white sand, covered with pretty palm trees. It was a beautiful sight.

"Hey baby girl, how you feelin'?"

Noodle turned at the sudden large and deep voice to see Russel towering over them.

"I'm getting by." She said, trying to smile, but couldn't seem to do so. And Russel noticed, but before he could say anything else, an obnoxious laugh came from the doorway.  
"It's about time you woke up, doll."

Noodle turned to see him standing there. Green, greasy, and in a speedo and sunglasses.  
Murdoc.

Noodle whipped around towards 2D. "What is HE doing here?"

2D could hear the rage in her voice and got nervous. "I, um, well…."

Russel cut him off. "Noods, you gotta understand."

"Ugh!" Noodle groaned and made her way towards the house on her crutches as Murdoc walked passed her. He threw his towel over his shoulder.

"Noodle!" 2D put his hand out only to have Murdoc slap it away.

"Eh, let her run off. She'll get over it. As for me, I'm gonna go get my tan on!" and with that he walked off, leaving a short silence between Russel and 2D.

Finally after a minute or two, 2D spoke up. "Why the hell did we agree ta' do this again?"

"Hey man, I don't like it either but it's for the best right now."

"I've had enough beaches and I've had enough of Murdoc! I ain't livin' wif' him again!" 2D threw up his arms and began to walk towards the beach.

"Fine D! Go! Leave Noodle here after she saved your ass!"

2D stopped and his shoulders drooped.

"Listen, I don't like this set up anymore then you do. And I can tell Noodle hates it too. But it's the best for her right now! She needs to recover and can't be traveling around right now. Murdoc just so happened to be here and get a beach house. I know we all have bad blood towards him right now, but this is how it's gotta be. Only for a little while okay?"

2D didn't turn around and didn't say a word.

"Come on man! Don't be like this! She needs you right now!"

2D flung around. "Why do ya' fink she needs me? She's got you don't she?"

"You're her best friend idiot! She went back for YOU! Can't you do her the same? Can't you just be by her side a little while longer? There's only so much I can do looking like…like this!"

2D could clearly see Russel's frustration…especially with his size and all. And then he really did start to feel like shit. Noodle did save his life…he owed it to her to make sure she got well. Though he wasn't much of caretaker and could already see Noodle doesn't like to accept help, he would still do his best…it was only right.

"Yeah…yeah...I know…sorry. I jus'…it's jus' been a long 2 years…."

"I know man…but right now she comes first. She's been through way more shit then we have."

2D nodded, feeling a bit guilty at what he had just said.

"Come on. Let's go check on her." Russel looked at the beach house.

A few minutes later, Noodle and 2D sat on the roof with Russel standing next to the building looking down on them.

"So see Noods? I set this up to take of you, not to hurt you." Russel explained.

Noodle sighed. "I know…I know. Thank you…it's just been a difficult adjustment is all…" she said the last part quietly.

Russel and 2D and looked at each other, both feeling sympathy for Noodle.

"We understand. But you don't have to worry about anything, alright? Everything is...everything is gonna be alright." Russel paused, trying to believe his own words.

"Yeah...okay..." Noodle said quietly before lifting herself back to her feet and hobbled back inside on her crutches.

2D and Russel watched her until she was fully inside the house.

"Russ...whas' wrong wif' her?" 2D asked, biting his lip.

"She's not doing well. She's gotta recover."

"Her injuries right?"

"It's more than that D..."

"Oh..." 2D looked down at his lap. Poor Noodle. She was broken in more places than just her wrist.

Meanwhile, Noodle made her way around the single floor beach house. She had to admit, the house was nice. It was much nicer then any place they've ever lived in...Well, for now. It hasn't been trashed yet.

She picked out a small room that was pre-decorated with coral colored walls and had some sort of beachy seashell theme. There was a queen sized bed with a small night stand on the right of it, with a clothing trunk in front of the bed. A small white desk and chair sat in the corner with a small TV atop it. She hobbled over to the bed, where she sat down and set her crutches against the wall before pulling her legs up and lying down on the bed. She let out a relaxed sigh. It's been a while since she had slept on a bed as nice as this...Her head felt heavy, and so did her eyes. The drugs were still running strong through her.

It wasn't long before she was once again lost in her sleep...and in her dreams.

She kept falling...

There was nothing to grab onto, as far as she knew anyway. It was so dark around her, that she couldn't see if there was anything to grab onto...or where she was falling for that matter. She reached her hand out and felt around desperately, but there was nothing. She hit something hard and wet, before sinking deeper into the salty waters. She tried to fight the current that was pulling her down into the dark and cold sea, but she couldn't. Her lungs felt the sting of the icy cold water. She was drowning. She was drowning and couldn't save herself.

And then she was on land. Back on Plastic Beach. She heard a click, and felt cold metal to her head. She quickly looked up to see...herself? No. It was her. This girl had a menacing look in her eyes. She gave Noodle a big distorted smile that almost looked demonic.

"I will not be replaced by a clone." she said darkly, before pulling the trigger and blowing Noodle's brains out.

"AHHHHHH!" Noodle shot up, screaming.

"Noodle!" 2D rushed into her room and saw her sitting up in bed, her hands to her head, still screaming.

He hurried over to her and gently reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder, when Noodle whipped her head around.

"NO! Stay away from me!" she threw her fist straight across 2D's face, causing his head to whip back. He quickly shrunk back into the corner of the room.

At that moment, Noodle snapped back into reality, realizing that she was in her room, in her bed. She quickly looked to the corner of the bedroom, where she saw 2D, whimpering a bit, wiping the blood from his nose with his hand. She had punched 2D.

She had hit him...hurt him...what the hell was wrong with her?

"2D! I'm...I'm so sorry! I thought you were...I thought you were somebody else!" she was flustered, and didn't quite know what to do. She got to her feet and hobbled over to 2D on one foot before slumping to the floor and sliding in front of him. She reached a hand out to him, where he flinched, but only slightly before she gently put his face in her hands.

"I'm so sorry 2D..." she whispered. "I had a nightmare...I thought you were someone else...somebody who was...who was trying to harm me."

2D looked at her, his nose still trickling blood, and their faces incredibly close. Her eyes were not turned to his, but to the floor. Her hands were shaking.

She was frightened.

Not too long after that little incident, 2D was sitting cross-legged on Noodle's bed with pieces of tissue stuck up his nostrils to stop the bleeding. Noodle was once again up and hobbling around the room. 2D thought he should tell her to just sit, but she probably wouldn't listen anyway. Noodle went to the small desk and opened up the first drawer, where she pulled out the prescription pill bottle. Her ankle was killing her again, probably because she was hopping on it all day. Her head was pounding too. She couldn't just calm down. She took 4 pills and down them with some bottled water. She opened another drawer and, to her luck, found a small first aid kit, of which she carried back to bed. She sat in front of 2D and opened the first aid kit.

"Did your nose stop bleeding yet?" she asked.

"Uh...um..." 2D pulled out the tissue pieces, which were now soaked in red, but no more blood was flowing from his nose. "I fink' it's alright…."

"I'm so sorry…" she said quietly while dabbing his nose with a cotton ball. "I don't know what has been coming over me…"

"It's alright…you jus' had a bad dream right?" he shrugged. "I've had bad dreams b'fore too…so I get it." He smiled, but it kind of hurt his nose.

This made the corners of Noodle's mouth turn up a bit, though she didn't smile completely. It was sweet that he was trying to make her feel better.

"You really pack a punch though." 2D laughed.

"Yeah, well, I guess I don't know my own strength." Noodle looked away, but 2D could spot a small smile.

"I'm alright, really doll. I've gotten worse." He shrugged.

This didn't exactly make Noodle feel better, but him being here was good…at least she didn't have to be alone. She finished tending to his face before closing up the kit. She was about to stand again when 2D put his hand to her shoulder and gently pulled her back.

"You really shouldn't be standin' love…lemme get tha' for ya…"

Noodle wanted to protest, showing she wasn't helpless; but it was no use. She was too tired out from the day, and her pills were already getting to her. So she nodded and let 2D put the first aid kit back in its proper place. As 2D was fumbling around at the desk, Noodle pulled her leg up onto the bed and laid back onto the bed. The room was moving….she had taken too many of the pain pills. She accidentally let out a small sigh.

2D turned and looked back at Noodle, with small blood stains on his white t-shirt.

"Whas' wrong?" he asked.

"These pills…"

2D raised an eyebrow and looked down at the desk where the orange pill bottle sat. He picked it up and examined the label.

"Aha, they got you on the hard stuff huh?" he grinned.

Noodle only groaned.

"How many did you take?"

"Fourrr…."

2D looked back at Noodle and walked over to her bed, where she was laying, staring up at the ceiling, her pupils bigger than an American quarter.

"Uh-oh," 2D sat next to her. "You took too many huh?"

"I guess so…2D what the hell?"

"It's alright love, you're just havin' a trip."

"Will I have a heart attack or something?"

"Nah, You'll just feel weird."

"I do feel weird…why is the wall green?"

2D couldn't help but shake his head, trying not to laugh. He had never seen Noodle high before.

"Well, how do you feel?"

"Comfortably numb…"

2D smiled gently. "The pain?"

"Gone. Sayonara…"

"Well, thas' good…"2D was about to stand up and head back to his own room when room rolled onto her side, looking at 2D with her huge dilated eyes.

He couldn't just leave her here.

"How about…I stay?"

"Why?" she smiled a goofy smile.

Oh yeah. She was definitely high.

"Cuz' you'll freak yourself out…I wanna make sure you'll like, eh, be okay? You did take four…"

"Thought you said I'd be okay?" she raised an eyebrow, still smiling.

"Yeah, well, you ain't a pill poppin' junkie like me. Wanna see if you can handle four," he winked.

"Yeahhhh okay." Noodle giggled, somewhat bouncing her little bum on the bed.

"Calm down there, cowgirl. Ya' need ta' rest." 2D shook his head but couldn't help but smile.

For a while there was just a lot of silence among the two. 2D would play around on his phone, while Noodle would just stare up at the ceiling, or fidget with her hands and feet. 2D would occasionally look up if Noodle let out a giggle, or a sigh, just to check up on her. 2D ended up sliding more into the bed, his upper back and head leaning against the headboard. After another sigh escaped Noodle, 2D looked up and over at Noodle, who had shifted to her side.

She gently grabbed 2D's shirt, her hands shaking a little now. "I do not…know what to do." She said very quietly as she shut her eyes.

In fact, she said it so quietly that 2D didn't know if she was addressing him or not. Either way, this caused a look of distress to cross his face. She wasn't doing well. Behind the drug induced giggles and smiles, she wasn't completely put together. 2D laid his head on a pillow next to Noodle and watched her as her hands slowly let go of his shirt, her head resting on the pillow.

Maybe he wasn't completely together either…

It wasn't long before Noodle was fast asleep. 2D had stayed up for a little over an hour, watching her, making sure she was okay…

For some reason he felt it was his responsibility to look after her. Not because Russel practically demanded it, but because it was just natural instinct. They had always looked after Noodle, ever since she was a child. 2D looked down at her and gently pushed a piece of her fringe from her eyes, somewhat playing with in it his fingers for a moment.  
In fact, it was still very hard for him to see her this way. She wasn't a child; she was all grown up. Even the way she spoke sounded different. He wasn't sure if that made him sad or not.

After watching her for about an hour and a half, he ended up lying next to Noodle, just for a moment to rest his eyes.

At the crack of dawn, a steady stream of orange light flooded through the white curtains, irritating 2D. He flinched a little, but continued to snore, his mouth slightly open.  
He slowly opened his eyes, flinching at the orange light, before realizing it was sunrise. He let out a small moan and squinted his eyes. Before he could think about anything else, he turned his head to see Noodle, literally right in his face. 2D nearly jumped out of his skin before realizing that he had fallen asleep in Noodle's room last night….and that wasn't all. Noodle was completely pressed against him, her arms around his neck, and…snuggling….with him.

For some reason, 2D's face got incredibly hot, for he could feel the blood rushing to his cheeks. He took a small breath and slowly moved out of Noodle's hug, quietly standing up and gently moving her back into place on the bed. She moaned a bit, before snoring loudly, her mouth wide open. 2D's eyes widened. Such a loud noise from such a small girl.

After he made sure Noodle was alright, he quietly made his way out of Noodle's bedroom, still feeling the slight blush in his cheeks. Why did he feel like that? It was just Noodle anyway.

2D shook off the thought due to tiredness, and made his way to his room, where he shut and locked the door; mostly so Murdoc wouldn't barge in for some stupid reason. 2D sat on his bed for a moment or two before lying down.

The bed was comfy… not old and springy like the one he had back in his underwater room. His back actually felt good…in fact, he slept like a baby in…Noodle's room.

He shook his head, as if to shake off the thought, though he wasn't quite sure why he would need to shake it off to begin with.

So this was their home…

For now anyway.


	6. Chapter 6

The sun continued to rise higher in the sky, its light moving more through the curtains of Noodle's bedroom. A beam of light fell over her face, causing her eyes to open slowly. She lay in her bed, her eyes adjusting to the light, just looking up at the ceiling.

Where was she again?

She slowly turned her head towards the sunlight, towards her window. Just outside of her white curtains she could see sand, palm trees, and a little bit of the sea. She looked back up at the ceiling.

So it wasn't a dream.

She was really here; here in a house, in a bedroom, in a bed…

She wasn't being chased after.

She didn't have a gun to her head by a clone of herself.

She was safe.

But if so, why did she not want to get out of bed? She didn't even want to move for that matter. She clenched her eyes shut.

But she must. She had to get up.

With a swift motion, she sat up and swung her good leg over the side of her bed, while carefully moving her leg with the bad ankle with her hands. After she managed to sit on the side of the bed, she sighed and reached for her crutches. After lifting herself up, she walked past the trunk that was sitting in front of her bed. Sitting upon it was a folded piece of paper that she didn't take notice of until now. She picked up the paper and carefully unfolded it. The only thing that was scratched on it was:

_For you. _

_-Russ _

Noodle looked down at the trunk and lowered herself best she could. She clicked open the trunk to find stacks of t-shirts, tank tops, shorts, jeans, and packs of under garments folded neatly. Noodle managed to crack a small smile.

Meanwhile, 2D was making his way around the small house. Though it was past noon now, 2D had also just woken up himself. It had been a very long couple of days, so the rest was well worth it. He discovered the kitchen and walked inside. It was a very nice kitchen, completely furnished with the latest appliances, which were neatly set up on the nice marble counters.

"Nice digs…" 2D said to himself. They have never lived in a place this nice before…well, he didn't know how much longer it would actually look nice, but it was nice nonetheless. 2D walked over to the stove where, right above it, he spotted a microwave.

"We ave' a microwave?" 2D said almost excitedly.

Before he could do anything else, he was suddenly whacked in the back of the head, smashing his face into the microwave.

"Move." Murdoc shoved past him.

"Agh! Fuck!" 2D clapped his hands to his nose, which was still healing from last night.

"God damned idiot." Murdoc shook his head and growled as he went to exit out the kitchen door. He was sporting a pair of khaki shorts and flip flops with pink sunglasses.

"Where you goin'?" 2D asked, wiping the small stream of blood from his nose.

"Out."

"Hm…" 2D only muttered as he walked over to the fridge. "So like, how long we stayin' here?"

"Dunno."

2D raised an eyebrow at Murdoc before opening the refrigerator, discovering that it was empty, to his dismay.

"There ain't no food!" 2D looked up.

"There ain't no fooood!" Murdoc mocked. "Well go out and get some then faceache! I got important, er, business to attend to." And with that, Murdoc exited the kitchen.

2D only sighed.

He didn't know? Well, one thing was for sure: 2D was not about to be stranded on another beach with the likes of him. He had had enough beaches, ocean, and Murdoc for a while. 2D clenched his fist before slamming the refrigerator door shut. Upon doing so, he noticed little Noodle standing in the doorway on her crutches, looking at him. A bit shocked to see her there so suddenly, he nervously scratched the back of his head.

"Oh, uh, hey Noods. Didn't see ya' there doll…"

Noodle cocked her head. "Are you alright?"

"Uh, yeah…I'm alright."

Noodle came into the kitchen, wearing black shorts and a pink tank top. "Did you sleep well?" she asked.

"Slept like a baby actually. S'been a while." 2D smiled shyly. "What about yew?"

"I actually slept very well too." Noodle tried to crack a smile, but 2D could tell it was forced, unlike the ones she gave him last night while she was hopped up.

"How's yer' ankle?" 2D looked down at Noodle's foot.

"It's actually not so bad today." Noodle also looked down at her ankle; it really wasn't feeling as bad. Maybe it was all the rest she had gotten…or the pills. Noodle was quickly snapped out of her thoughts by a very loud and strange sound. She looked up at 2D, who was blushing red.

"S-sorry!" he squeaked. "Jus' a bit hungry, ya know?"

"Is there no food?"

"Nah…nothin'." 2D shrugged.

"Well, I suppose we could go food shopping…if you are up for it?"

"Uh, yeah! I mean, if you are feelin' alright?"

"Well, I have to get out anyway." Noodle shrugged.

After a few minutes, 2D and Noodle were walking along a boardwalk close to the house. It was a nice little area; the house facing the sea, with a small shopping area behind the small cluster of beach houses. The weather was nice; a bit hot, but there was a very lovely breeze coming from the sea. The sky was very blue, with no clouds visible whatsoever. 2D couldn't help but look out at the sea. It looked so calm and peaceful, and, dare he say, beautiful. It was hard to believe that just yesterday they were being tossed around in it and nearly killed by it. It was strangely ironic actually…

2D looked over at Noodle, who seemed like she was walking okay on her crutches, but still…

"Hey Noodle? Are you sure you are alright walkin' around like that?"

"I'm fine 2D, but thank you."

2D nodded as they walked along the boardwalk, where they spotted a convenient store. The two stayed pretty silent for the most part. They gathered up necessities such as toothbrushes, soap, and shampoo, as well as simple foods and snacks. The two went to check out, where 2D paid for the lot, as well as a pack of cigarettes and a light. Afterwards, the two made their way back to the house, where they unpacked and started to settle in. Noodle filled a kettle with hot water and set it on the stove to boil, while 2D took out two cups of instant ramen. Noodle leaned on her crutches as she began to boil more water for iced tea, when 2D came up behind her and put a hand on her shoulder, startling her just a bit.

"Ey', why don't you sit down? I got this."

"I'm alright 2D, really." She protested.

"You jus' look a bit tired is all…"

Noodle sighed, but could see that 2D was only trying to be nice. Who was she kidding anyway? She was, in fact, very tired. She hobbled around on her crutches while carrying grocery bags.

"Alright…thank you 2D." Noodle took a seat at the kitchen table as 2D tended to the lunch.

"Could ya' toss me my smokes love?" 2D asked while dropping some tea bags into a glass pitcher. Noodle reached for the cigarette pack across the table and unwrapped the pack. She loosened the pack by gently pounding the bottom of the pack into her palm, before opening it up and taking a cigarette.

"Do you mind if I have one?" she asked.

2D turned and looked at her, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Uh, yeah, thas' fine." He walked over to her, where she handed him the pack. He took a cigarette in his mouth and pulled a small lighter out of his pocket, where he lit the end and inhaled.

"Ya' need a light?" he asked, while blowing smoke from his mouth.

"Yes please."

2D leaned down and lit the end of her cigarette as she puffed. She then blew out the smoke with a very large and relaxed sigh. 2D looked at her before putting his smokes and lighter away in his back pocket.

"Ow' long you been smokin'?" he asked.

"A couple of years now I think…" she took another drag.

It was so weird watching Noodle smoke. 2D was still not used to being around an older and more mature Noodle. But she was adult now, so she could do what she wanted he supposed. It was actually kind of cute to see her smoking, in a way.

At that moment, both kettles started steaming, making a loud and high pitched whistle. 2D finished preparing the ramen by pouring the boiling water into both cups, with just a hint of lemon. He poured the other kettle into the pitcher.

"You like your tea sweet or unsweet?" asked 2D.

"Sweet please." Noodle said.

After 2D prepared their lunch, he set the cups of ramen and tea down onto the table and sat across from Noodle, who had just put her cigarette out in the ashtray in the middle of the table. Again, they didn't exchange many words. Noodle had barely touched her soup before standing up and excusing herself from the table.

"Are ya' sure? You barely touched yer…"

Before 2D could finish his sentence, Noodle was already hobbling out of the kitchen.

"Thank you for the lunch…I'm just not all that hungry…I am sorry…" she said softly before turning her back and walking out of the kitchen. All 2D could do was stare at the doorway. After a second of debating whether to follow her or not, he heard a door shut, which he assumed was hers. 2D stared into his ramen cup.

He wasn't very hungry either all of the sudden.

He wrapped up the ramen cups and stuck them in the fridge, along with the pitcher of iced tea. Afterwards, he decided to head out and look around. He knew Murdoc was off somewhere still, considering how dead calm the house was, and Russel was nowhere to be found. Now 2D knew Murdoc was probably out trying to score some hot Hawaiian arse, while Russel…well, he really couldn't imagine where Russel could have gone.

2D stepped outside again, and the sweet smell of palm trees, sand, and the salty ocean wafted through the air. In all honesty, 2D would love to be anywhere else in the world but here. Most people would beg to differ, but he had enough beaches and sea water for, oh, the past few years. He still wondered how long they would be here, why they were here...

There was a good sized patio that the front door sat on. 2D walked down the steps. More sand. He could see the ocean right from where he was. He walked through some greenery, where he spotted a cluster of palm trees, much like the ones he and Noodle took shelter under just the day before. Between two trees was a comfy looking hammock. 2D looked around, wondering if it belonged to anyone in particular before shrugging and sitting in it. He laid back and lit up another cigarette. This was actually somewhat relaxing. To think that he could actually feel relaxed, especially after the events that took place over the past couple of years, hell, even after the past couple of days, was a miracle in itself. Only a few days ago was he locked in that room, about full and ready to blow his brains…and then she saved him.

2D closed his eyes, blowing out some smoke. Noodle had saved his life. She had come back for him. He thought she was dead, had been dead for years, but here she was, very much alive.

But she was different.

The girl who used to laugh at all of his jokes, talk to him about her inner most thoughts, and share song ideas with…she wasn't there. She was expressionless, monotone, and silent. He knew she was the real Noodle because he saw the real Noodle for at least a few minutes while he held her on that beach. When she had saved him. When she said she had missed him.

He didn't exactly know what to do in this type of situation. He wasn't even sure if she even wanted to talk to him, and even if she did, what could he say back? He wasn't very good at comforting others…

As he pondered on these things, his eyes began to droop.

He was worried about Noodle. He never really truly worried about someone this much since his dad was sick. Noodle was his friend, and it really hurt him to see her like this.

But what could he do? She didn't even want to see him.

What seemed to be only about twenty minutes, 2D awoke with a start.

"Ahhh! The fuck?" he looked down to see ash and his still lit cigarette on his shirt. He sighed and put the cigarette out. Of course ihe/i would fall asleep with a lit cigarette in his mouth. He stretched and looked around. He could her faint laughter and music coming from the beach. He looked behind him to see a small group of people; some good looking men and hot young girls in bikinis playing volley ball, and some small children building sand castles and wading in the shallow part of the water near shore. The sky was orange as the sun started to set again.

2D shook his head and stood up. He was out for that long? Another day already went by? He began to walk back to the house, still feeling groggy. As he walked into the house, he noticed Noodle's door was still shut. Had she not come out this whole time? He paused for a moment, and then slowly walked up to the door, where he hesitated, and then knocked.

No answer.

"Noodle?"

Still no answer.

2D gently grabbed the handle and slowly opened the door and peaked inside. Noodle was lying in her bed, fast asleep. Her crutches looked as if they had been thrown to the floor. 2D raised an eyebrow and quietly walked in and picked them up, gently setting them next to her bed. Her pill bottle was open on her nightstand. 2D made a face and closed up the bottle. He knelt down next to her bed. She was sound asleep…but she was sleeping in a pile of…tissues? She had one clutched in her hand, and the skin around her eyes was red and a bit puffy.

She had been crying.

Meanwhile, Russel made his way back to the house, causing the few beach goers to stop and stare. They stared at him as he walked to the house; one person even snapped a photo on their cell phone, but nobody dared follow him. Russel sat next to the house, causing a bit of shaking as he hit the ground, somewhat like a mini-earthquake, which caused the beach goers to gasp and move elsewhere. He sighed and looked at the house. What he would do to be back to his normal size again. At that moment, he heard the front door opening and saw 2D walking out. He was lighting up another cigarette and didn't seem to look well.

"Hey 2D, what's up?" Russel said suddenly.

2D's eyes went white and he jumped suddenly, almost causing him to drop his cigarette.

"F-fuck Russ! Ya' scared me!" he stuttered.

"My bad, man." Russel apologized, forgetting his large voice.

2D took a large drag, his hands still shaking a bit. He walked over to Russel and sat near him in the sand. They were both quiet for a moment, before 2D spoke up.

"So, what did you do t'day Russ?"

"Eh…was out all day. Tryin' ta' get answers outta Muds…then tryin' to figure out how I could get back down ta' size. Not much luck on either subjects." He shook his head.

"Yeah, I tried talkin' to Murdoc too, all he did was bash my head inta' the microwave and left the 'ouse…'ow long do ya' fink we'll be 'ere?"

Russel sighed. "Dunno man. You can leave whenever you want…I just don't know about Noodle. She's still a little banged up. I don't think she should be travelin' just yet…but hey, you can leave whenever." He said nonchalantly.

This, for some reason, rubbed 2D the wrong way. He stood up and took another puff of his cigarette before throwing it into the sand.

"So like, what's tha' s'pposed ta' mean? Like I dun' care about Noodle? Like I'd jus' leave her 'ere? Aren't you the one who said I should?"

Of course, 2D knew he was being quite the hypocrite, considering just yesterday he was just ready to up and leave, without even thinking of Noodle's health or wellbeing, which suddenly caused him to feel guilty. She would never do that to him.

Russel saw 2D's stance and raised an eyebrow.

"What? That's not what I meant dawg…what's wrong with you?"

2D's heartbeat slowed, and his shoulders relaxed a bit more. "It's…It's Noodle…she ain't doin' so well Russ!" 2D blurted out.

Russel cocked his head, seeing the worried look on 2D's face.

"How so…?"

"She barely says anyfing to me…she won't eat…she stays locked up in her room all day…" 2D looked up at Russel. "What's wrong wif' her Russ?"

Russel sighed and closed his eyes, which seemed like a long time before he opened them again.

"I think she's depressed D."

2D only stared back at Russel and blinked. That was probably the reason why she had been crying.

"…Why?" 2D asked.

Russel looked at 2D like he was a dumbass.

"Why do you think? Hello? Look at all the shit she's been through, starting with that god damned El Manana video!" Russel had to calm himself as some tourists walked by, staring at him. His voice was definitely too loud. 2D meanwhile, had shrunk back. He felt like a complete and total idiot.

After that, the two were silent. After what seemed like forever, 2D decided to speak up again.

"Wha'da we do?" he asked almost too quietly.

"I…I don't know man…I honestly don't know."

2D felt discouraged. Even Russel didn't have any answers this time.

A few days had passed. 2D still hadn't seen much of Noodle. She spent most of her time locked up in her room. Russel had tried talking to her, but all she would say is that she was alright, even though he and 2D knew she wasn't. It had been a good three days before 2D had even seen Noodle outside of her room again.

It was nearing evening again, and Murdoc was once again getting ready to go out on a night on the town. It was Friday, and he had just come out of his room, dressed in barely nothing as usual.

2D was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping on some coffee and reading a newspaper. Russel was once again, nowhere to be found. 2D wondered where he spent most of his days, but he could never get much out of him these days.

Murdoc went to cabinet above the stove and grabbed two bottles of booze; a big bottle of rum and a big bottle of vodka.

"Where you goin' to?" 2D looked up from his paper and raised an eyebrow.

Murdoc only scowled and threw a plastic cup at 2D from across the room.

"Ouch! What the fuck? All I did was ask a question arsehole!"

"I'm going out to have a life, unlike you faceache. Get laid. Unlike you faceache."

"Fuck off…" 2D mumbled.

Murdoc suddenly went around 2D, getting unusually close to him from behind. He looked over his shoulder at the newspaper.

"Ugh, back off would ya?" 2D shuddered at Murdoc's lack of personal hygiene.

Murdoc only hacked a few smoker coughs and hocked a loogie into 2D's coffee. 2D only closed his eyes in distress.

"Don't yew got whores ta' fuck?"

"Hey, I'm livin' it up dumb fuck. I suggest you do the same."

"What'dya mean?" 2D put down his paper and turned towards the green skinned bassist.

"There's a huge party goin' on some ways down. Lot's a' hot birds ta' shag and plenty a' booze."

2D raised an eyebrow. "Are you actually invitin' me to a party yer' attendin'?"

"Quit making me sound like a fag. I'm just sayin' you're not her little care taker."

2D gave Murdoc a confused look. "Huh? Who's caretaker?"

At that moment, a door opened with a small creak. Murdoc and 2D both looked at the doorway of the kitchen, hearing only small footsteps coming down the hall. Murdoc turned back to 2D and grinned.

"Oh, you know who I mean."

At that moment, Noodle hobbled into the kitchen, without her crutches, just slightly limping on her good leg. She didn't say a word to either of them.

2D stood up suddenly. "Noodle, where are yer' crutches…?"

Noodle walked to the kitchen sink and turned on the water. Murdoc turned to 2D and gave a smirk before slinking over to Noodle.

"How's yer' leg doll?"

Noodle said nothing.

"What? Still givin' me the silent treatment eh?"

"Leave er' alone man." 2D spoke up.

"Hang on, hang on faceache. I just wanna know what her deal is." He turned back to Noodle. "You know love, you can only put on this helpless act for so long. You ain't as innocent as people think. You and I both know that."

"Murdoc stop it!" 2D cried.

"Actin' like you're so self-righteous, when really, you're no better then me. Or her."

Noodle's hands began to clench into fists at her sides, with the water still running.

"Of course she never measured up to you. A copy could never surpass the original…But at least she followed orders and didn't run her bitchy little mouth like you did."

"Murdoc! Fuck off!" 2D actually began to raise his voice. It was rocket science that talking about the Cyborg was upsetting Noodle. But of course, Murdoc continued to run his mouth.

"And look. Here you are, right back her with me and Gorillaz. I told you there was no getting out of a contract with me. Even after all of these years, here you are. A little pathetic don't you think, little girl?"

2D was about to say something else, when, before he even knew what happened, Noodle had flat out flung her fist into the side of Murdoc's face, so hard 2D could swear he heard something crack. Noodle stood there for a moment, her fist still in the air, Murdoc's face still turned to the side, and 2D standing there, staring at them both in shock. Then, suddenly, Noodle looked up, revealing tears streaming down her face, yet she looked extremely angry. This was the most emotion 2D had seen out of her in days.

"I'll…I'LL NEVER BE LIKE YOU!" Noodle shouted, and with that, quickly limped out the kitchen door.

2D looked at the doorway, and then back at Murdoc, who turned his face back to 2D, revealing a bloody nose and bruising cheek. Yet all Murdoc did was smile…it was one of the most evil grins 2D had seen, and he had known Murdoc for years. 2D didn't know what to say…he wanted so badly to scream at Murdoc, to, dare he say, hurt him. He wanted so badly to kick the shit out of him for what he had said to Noodle…all of those horrible things that just weren't true…

And then he heard the front door slam. 2D looked at Murdoc and glared.

"You…Yer' a fucking ARSEHOLE! How could you say that about her?!"

"Better run after her before she breaks the other ankle." Murdoc said nonchalantly while still smiling and wiping the blood from his nose.

2D only looked at him in shock. Sometimes he forgot how heartless Murdoc could actually be…but he wasn't even going to think on that right now. Before anything else happened, 2D quickly rushed through the house and out the front door.

2D ran out onto the beach. For a girl with a bad ankle, she certainly got away fast. He looked both ways, his attention falling on a nearby beach party happening. There were many tents set up and people starting bonfires as the sun started to set. He quickly headed that way, not sure if that's the way she went, but went for it anyway. He quickly made his way through the crowd, accidentally getting knocked around a bit, but mostly knocking others over with his clumsiness. However, not many people seemed to care, and he soon realized many of these people smelled like weed anyway. He quickly shook off the scent and looked around in the crowd, even shouting her name. A band was on a small stage, set under a small tent, who were covering songs by "The Rolling Stones". He tried to shout over the music, but couldn't seem to find his voice over the "Sympathy for the Devil" lyrics over the speakers. Nonetheless, he continued to search for her. He even stopped a few people and asked if they've seen her. Most people were too baked to even answer his question, frustrating him. He decided to try again, this time, asking a young couple, who looked like they were in their mid-twenties, walking on by.

"S'cuse me! I was wonderin' if you could elp' me…I'm lookin' for this girl…she's got short black 'air…she's Asian…uhm…she's limpin' around and can't walk well…"

The young couple looked at each other and back at him. The girl pointed to the shore.

"We did see someone who looked like that…I'm not sure if she was Asian or not, but she was limping."

That was all he needed.

"Fank you!" was all he said before pushing his way through the crowd and out to the ocean. The band on stage stopped playing, the lead singer was saying something over the speakers, but 2D was too focused on finding Noodle to even pay attention to what he was saying. As 2D reached the edge of the shore, the band slowly began to play the song "Wild Horses". 2D stopped to catch his breath, slouching over with his hands on his knees, about to give up.

Then he looked up and saw her. There she was, sitting on the shore, her feet in the water, just looking out at the sea. 2D sighed with relief.

"Noodle!" he called out.

Noodle quickly looked back at him, straight at him actually. But she didn't respond to him; she only looked at him, with, if 2D was mistaken, a look of fear on her face, before she stood up and began to quickly walk away from him.

For a moment, 2D felt like his heart had just broken into pieces. Why was she running from him? Him of all people? What was this girl's problem?

2D looked down, his shoulders drooped. He turned around and was about to walk back to the house…when a thought suddenly hit him…

No…no. She wasn't just going to run away from him like that! And he wasn't just going to let her walk off in her condition. He cared about her too much to…

_You know I can't let you…slide through my hands…_

No. This was enough.

2D quickly turned on his heel and ran towards Noodle, who didn't get too far.

"Noodle!" he called out again, this time, causing Noodle to look back again and actually respond.

"Go away!" she yelled back.

Another stab in the heart.

But he wasn't going away that easily.

2D huffed, somewhat feeling irritated at this point, even angry.

"Stop!" he called.

"No!" she kept limping down the shoreline, both of them beginning to cause a scene with other onlookers.

Of course, in her condition, 2D easily caught up to her and reached out, grabbing her arm, causing her to stop in her tracks.

"Let go of me!" she yelled.

"Noodle please!" 2D begged.

"I said LET GO!" she twisted around, trying to escape 2D's grip, only causing his hands to tightened even more around her wrist.

"NO!" he said unusually loudly, accompanied by strength Noodle didn't even know he had. This caused her to stop struggling and only look up at him, his 6'3 build towering over her small 5'1 frame. All they did was stare at each other for a moment, with 2D's face softening. At that moment, Noodle's body nearly crumbled as she sank to the ground, with tears beginning to flood down her cheeks. 2D frantically dropped to the ground near her.

"Noodle…" he tried to reach out for her, but she once again, smacked his hand away and turned away. Usually, he'd back off, but not with her.

No way.

He gently put his lanky arms around her from behind and pulled her into him, holding her close. Noodle did not expect this. All she did was stiffen up in his hold as tears continued to flow down her face.

She couldn't get away from him. Even if she tried, for some reason, he would chase after her. What has gotten into that blue haired head of his? Chasing after a girl like this….

But before she could even process anymore thoughts, once again, she crumbled, sobbing like a baby. This time, she gave up. She turned towards 2D and buried her face into his chest, sobbing loudly, but could only be heard by 2D, as the music continued to play loudly over the speakers.

This was all too much. 2D was starting to lose himself here…after everything that had happened the past few years…the past few days…this was definitely an emotional overload. He tightly wrapped his arms around Noodle, holding her close to him. She let him hold her and continued to cry. She soon felt 2D's face in her hair, feeling his body slightly jerk.

He was silently crying as well, his tears rolling down her face.

She wrapped her arms around his torso as they sat there in the sand, in the middle of a crowd of strangers, as they cried together, as neither of them said a word.

_Wild horses couldn't drag me away….wild, wild horses, we'll ride them someday…_


	7. Chapter 7

2D carefully walked through the crowd holding a paper plate of food, carefully avoiding people who were dancing about. The sun had already set, but the sky was still a deep orange, fading into a dark blue gradient, welcoming the night sky. He made his way to the shore side, where the tide slowly drifted back and forth from the shore. There were some, couples and groups of friends, who were sitting near the shore as well. While most of the partying and dancing was taking place farther up on the beach, some chose to sit on beach blankets and talk, drink, and smoke. Noodle was sitting on a beach blanket a bystander so kindly let them use, just looking out at the sea. 2D sat next to her and handed her the plate.

"They let me take some food! Pretty cool blokes around 'ere, even if they are a bunch a' hippies…"

Noodle looked at the plate.

"Ey…you gotta be hungry…you haven't eaten in…"

Noodle quickly snatched the plate away and sank her teeth into the burger, chomping away.

"Uh…days…" 2D scratched the back of his head.

"What is this?" Noodle asked with her mouth full of food.

"Veggie burger. S'good yeah?"

Noodle nodded, swallowing and then busting open the little bag of potato chips.

2D just watched her for a moment, happy that she was finally eating. Noodle noticed this and swallowed again.

"What?" she asked.

2D blinked, realizing he was staring. "Oh, uh! Nofin'…uh...you got somefin' there…" 2D couldn't help but smile at Noodle's messy face. He reached his hand out a gently wiped a glob of ketchup from her cheek with his thumb.

And that's when Noodle actually smiled.

"Thank you." She said.

There was a small silence between them for a moment. The waves lapped at the shore as the moon rose, at its fullest tonight. People were laughing and dancing to that one Sugar Ray song…just having a good time. Finally, 2D managed to speak up.

"So…uh…are you, uh…" 2D shifted. "Are you gonna be awright?" He really didn't know what else to say, but he wanted to ask anyway.

Noodle looked down at her lap, and then back up at the sea.

"I'm…sorry…." She looked at him. "I'm sorry about what happened back there. I must have looked so stupid…"

"Huh? Nah, you didn't look stupid…"

"Oh come on." Noodle protested. "Running around like a crazy person and crying like a baby…"

2D's eyes softened. "Not at all love."

Noodle managed to let out a small smile again. "You always were the sweet one you know."

2D's cheeks flushed for a moment. "Huh? Oh, nah…I dun' fink so…" he nervously scratched the back of his head.

Noodle only smiled, followed by a sigh. "It's just….hard, you know?"

2D looked up again. "Whad'ya mean?"

Noodle looked back down. "I can't explain it…you will…"she sighed again. "You will probably think I am crazy…."

"Ey, I'd never fink' that…"

"Okay….well, I've just been having nightmares. And then this stupid thing…" she looked at her wrapped up ankle. "I feel so…helpless." She said the last part quietly.

2D could only look at her. She looked so tired and conflicted…

"Noodle…." He spoke up. "Wha' exactly 'appened to you these pas' few years?" he spotted the bruise on her face.

And that's when Noodle poured out everything. About the windmill crash, Hell, The Boogieman and his minions, her constantly being on the run, and Murdoc. 2D listened closely, trying to understand everything she was telling him, which, at some points, was quite a lot to handle.

"So…you made a deal wif' Murdoc?" he was still trying to fully wrap his head around this.

"Yes…" Noodle looked down at her lap again. "But you have to understand…I just wanted out. I had enough of Murdoc's shit. With his crooked ways and the bad luck he's put upon the band…I was finished. So after I did one final thing for him, I would be free to go. Of course Murdoc being the sly one he is, I should have known better." She shrugged, shaking her head. "After that, there was the windmill crash. Lucky for me, I did have a parachute and all, but I was still pretty banged up. And then all of the other events quickly followed….so, you get the picture."

"Damn Noods…no wonda' you got nightmares." He paused. "I'm sorry love."

"Hey, it's fine…I'm fine…" She ran her hand through some sand. "Heh. Who am I kidding…"

"All these years…man…we all 'fought you were dead…." 2D actually felt a small twinge of guilt in his chest. Noodle had been alive all along, but she really was living in hell. And there he was out and about, not even giving it a second thought. Sure, it wasn't his fault that he had no knowledge of Noodle being alive, but even so, he felt guilty that the poor girl had to go it all alone for so many years.

"So…what brought you back?" he asked.

Noodle continued to fiddle with the sand between her fingers. "Well…I figured I had some unfinished business to take care of with Murdoc. After I heard about Murdoc's new album, and that…Cyborg…you being locked up on that island….well, it was time. I had met up with Russel shortly after my ship was attacked, as you know, and it turned out that he had a score to settle with Murdoc as well. So we headed off to Plastic Beach. I had no idea what would happen when I got there of course, but I had to face him." She sighed. "Of course even now I still haven't truly confronted him, and I know for a fact that he does not give a flying fuck about anything that has happened."

2D kept listening. He was, at the least, happy she was talking to him finally. Though there were still some things about her that took some getting used to; her older figure, her smoking habits, she even swore a bit more, some of the words she tried not to say before, well, she was definitely using them now.

"And then I saw you flying through the air like that…and I got worried."

This caught 2D's attention again.

"Me?"

Noodle nodded.

That's right. If it wasn't for Noodle, he would have probably either been whale poop, or drowned at the bottom of the ocean somewhere.

"Noodle….I…" he looked at her. "Fank you…for saving my life…."

At that moment, Noodle put her finger to his lips. "Shhh. You saved mine too. We're even." She smiled, and that said it all. Everything that needed to be said was finally said.

"Okay…" 2D said softly as Noodle removed her finger. At that moment, something began to flutter inside of 2D. He didn't quite know what it was, so he decided to disregard it. This whole night was so heavy to begin with, so maybe it was time to lighten up a bit.

"I'm a bit thirsty. You want a beer?" he asked.

"I could go for one." She leaned back onto the beach blanket as 2D stood up and looked around. There was beer practically everywhere. He wandered off for a few minutes before bringing back a few bottles of beer.

"So they jus' gave me free beer." 2D laughed as he sat next to Noodle again. "I swear ev'ryone's stoned as fuck."

Noodle only smiled as 2D handed her a beer. She was back to feeling normal, well, as normal as she could feel for now. She really had gotten a lot out of her today, from punching Murdoc to venting to 2D. All of that must have helped somehow. There was still a lot she had to face off with, but for now, she might as well just chill out. Her best buddy was here, and that was all she needed.

"Do you have a bottle opener?" she asked.

"Uh…" 2D sort of looked around for a minute, a little dimwitted.

"Are you wearing a belt?"

"Yeah…?"

Before he could say anything else, Noodle had lifted his shirt and snapped off the bottle cap off on 2D's belt buckle. She handed the bottle to him, and then opened her own; once again, on his belt buckle. 2D only blinked.

"Um, sure, you can use my belt." 2D said jokingly.

"Thanks." Noodle said as she took a swig of beer. 2D only looked at her and shook his head while smiling. She was coming back; slowly but surely.

The two ended up spending most of the night on the beach as the party went on late. They mostly just sat and talked and had a few drinks. Noodle decided to eat more food, and it got to the point where 2D wondered how someone so little could eat so much. They talked with a few of the others who were sitting around nearby, just relaxing. Before they knew it, a few hours had passed, and the two were lying on the beach blanket, looking up at the sky. 2D was lying opposite of Noodle, so their heads were right next to each other. There were a few empty beer bottles surrounding them in the sand.

"I wonder how many stars are up there. How many do you think Toochi?"

"Er, I dunno, prolly a zillion or somefink."

"A zillion isn't a number, dummy." Noodle chuckled.

"Ow' do you know, Einstein?"

"Because I know everyyyythinggggg." Noodle waved her arms in a silly manner as she made a "spooky" sounding voice.

2D turned his head towards hers. "Awright. If you know evry'fing, what am I finkin' rightttt….now?"

Noodle turned her head as well and leaned in, causing their foreheads to touch. This only made 2D laugh out loud, partially from the pills he was continuously popping, as Noodle closed her eyes in concentration.

"You are thinking about….Murdoc. And how he's a bumhole."

2D only snickered again. "Do go on."

"You are thinking of a certain cheeseeee."

"What?"

Noodle only giggled. "The cheese has holes."

"Yer' a goof, ya know that?" 2D shook his head while smiling.

"Yes. Well…." Noodle only laughed again.

"I fink' you 'ad enough."

"No, I am a-okay!"

"Nah ah. Yer drunk."

"No I'm not 2D! I only had…I don't know, but not enough to get drunk yet." She playfully nudged him. "At least I'm not completely baked like you."

"I ain't baked."

"You are." Noodle got close to him and whispered in his ear. "Like a potato."

This only caused 2D to spit out whatever he was drinking at the time and laugh out loud.

"A potato?. Okay, yeah, I'm high as fuck right now. Shit Noods, you crack me up doll." He chuckled once more.

Noodle smiled and rolled her eyes before looking back up at the sky. "It's so beautiful." she reached her hand up. "Out of my reach though…"

2D only watched her as she rambled on about the sky. There was something about the way the moonlight hit her. She really did grow up to be quite pretty.

"Yoo hoo! Mr. Pot!"

2D blinked, snapping out of his thoughts to see Noodle up in his face again.

"Well hello." He said, with their faces incredibly close. "How can I 'elp you t'day? Here ta' buy some strings?"

"Who's the goof now you junkie?"

2D only giggled like a school girl. Noodle then moved a bit closer to him, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Hey…" she said softly. "Thank you."

2D raised an eyebrow.

"For…coming after me I guess." She pushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "And I guess…well, listening…I know I have been acting like a complete spazz lately…and I…"

2D interrupted her. "Ey…no one's callin' you a spazz. You act 'owever you want love…you been through a lot…I dun' mind it. Jus'… do me a favor…and dun' run too far next time." He gave a sweet grin, causing Noodle to smile back.

Then she paused for a second, before leaning in and planting a kiss on 2D's cheek. For a moment, he froze up, while also blushing a bit. His heart had nearly skipped a beat.

It was probably the pills…had to be the pills.

"Well wow, what was tha' for?"

"That was a thank you kiss." She said nonchalantly as she sat back up on the blanket. She looked at him and smiled.

2D sat up as well. "Well if yer' givin' out kisses, ow' about one 'ere? Make it even?" 2D pointed to his other cheek.

Did he really just say that? And did it matter? He wasn't exactly in control of most of his words right now anyway.

Noodle gave him a look. "Now don't be a pervert 2D." she said, causing 2D's cheeks to, once again, stain with red.

"I wasn't bein' a…"

2D was cut off by Noodle's laughter.

"Well, it is getting late. Maybe we should start to head back?" Noodle asked.

"Oh, uh…yeah…wha' time s'it exactly?" 2D asked, still a bit dazed out.

Noodle looked down at her cell phone. "It's nearing four."

"In tha' mornin'?"

"Yes!" Noodle giggled.

"Awright, awright. I suppose I should be getting' you back anyways. You gotta sleep off this beer."

"Psh!" Noodle waved a hand at him. "I'm totally fine!" Noodle got on her feet and stood up, as did 2D. 2D wobbled a bit, almost falling over again like the klutz he was.

Noodle giggled at this, but only for a moment before she tumbled forward. Luckily, 2D had his arms out.

"You awright?" 2D had his arms around her as she leaned into his chest, feeling a sharp pain in her ankle.

"I'm okay." She flinched.

"Is it yer' ankle?"

Noodle only let out a groan.

"Well, that's what ya get fer' not listenin' to the doc. You been on it all day missy."

"_Granted,_ I _was_ in the house all day for three days…"

"Okay, fair enough." 2D scooped her up in his arms and began to carry her back to the beach house.

"Hey!" Noodle's stomach was a little shaken up at the sudden swooping off her feet. "I said I'm fine!"

"Calm it girl, we're already halfway there." 2D chuckled.

Noodle puffed out her lower lip and groaned.

"Dun' gimme tha' look. Yer' buzzed up and 'ave a bad ankle."

Noodle only shrugged while she kept her arms locked around 2D's neck. She watched other people slowly beginning to disband into the early morning, while some just decided to pass out on the beach altogether. At this point Noodle was really beginning to feel the after effects of the day.

"I'm tired…"

"I know love…"

It wasn't long before they made it back to the house, greeted by a large snoring Russel, who was leaning against a palm tree sleeping.

2D's ass would be grass if Russel knew Noodle was out and about like this. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to give her alcohol under the circumstances, but from what 2D saw she was actually acting way better then earlier. Not that he was some psycho-therapist or something, but he knew her. She was definitely doing much better. She needed to be out in some fresh air, eat some good food, and loosen up with a couple of beers. She needed to punch Murdoc, and most of all, she needed to let out all of that stuff she had told him, even if he didn't fully understand it all.

2D carefully got them through the front door and shut it behind them. The house was still pretty dark and quiet, and 2D assumed that Murdoc had not come home. He gently carried the dizzied up girl inside, when she insisted that she could walk fine now that they were home. But she didn't go to bed.

"I'm tired, not sleepy." She protested.

2D shrugged, still a bit baked, as he invited her into his own room. Little did he know that she wanted to prolong having to sleep due to the nightmares she's been having every night.

Noodle sat on his bed, watching some late night comedy show on cable. She didn't say much, only laughed at certain points of the show, but mostly just sat snuggled with a pillow to her chest. 2D laid on the bed, messing around with his iPad and continuously shaking his head as everything in his vision began to skew. After about an hour or so, it was nearing 5 am, and 2D's eyes began to grow tired. He looked up at Noodle, who was still watching the TV.

"You gonna be awright love?" he spoke up as he reached for his pack of cigarettes on his night stand.

"Oh…um…yes. I'll be alright." She said it, but not so reassuringly. 2D popped a fag into his mouth and held out his pack to her, offering her one as well. She accepted the offer and took one, leaning forward as he lit the end of her smoke.

"Shouldn't you be gettin' some rest?" 2D blew out some smoke and nonchalantly flicked some ash onto the carpet. He took notice to her eyes, which looked like they were about to droop shut at any given moment.

"I suppose I should…"she shifted nervously, taking another puff of the cigarette.

"Wha' is it?"

"2D…could I sleep here tonight?"

2D only blinked for a moment. She was asking him if she could sleep in here? He coughed and put out his cigarette. Why was he feeling nervous about this? It was just Noodle. Maybe she should stay in here tonight, so he could make sure she was alright.

"Uh…okay…sure." 2D shrugged.

Noodle's face relaxed, looking somewhat relieved. And just like, she immediately laid back next to him, snuggling into the covers and making herself comfortable. Now, 2D's bed wasn't all that spacious; just a normal double sized bed that _could _fit two people, but would still be a bit, well, cramped. 2D looked down at Noodle. He didn't have the heart to say no. But he couldn't help but feel a sense of boundary between them now. When she was younger, Noodle sleeping in his bed would have been nothing. But here she was; a full grown and, dare he say beautiful, young woman laying next to him in his already cramped bed. Something inside of him felt strange about laying so close to her, much like a few nights before.

He looked at her again. The poor thing was definitely exhausted, and so was 2D. It really had been a very long and heavy day, but at least Noodle was finally coming around again. He looked at her as she began to sleep, and gently pushed a piece of hair out of her face, revealing her soft and lovely features.

Whatever weird thoughts were going through his head right now, it was all probably drug induced nonsense. Noodle was his friend, his pal, and his mate. So what if they shared a bed? It wouldn't have been the first time anyway…

2D crossed his arms behind his head and relaxed. He took one last look at Noodle, who was now peacefully fast asleep. After that, 2D closed his own eyes and began to drift off. As long as Noodle was okay, then he would be okay too. He had to make sure she was happy…he had to take care of her.

He owed her that much, even if they were declared "even".


End file.
